Wily Craig Tiley is wasting no time in his personal quest to transform the US Open into tennis's new-age "Happy Slam".
Tiley is barely a month into his fresh role as USTA boss after two decades running Tennis Australia and morphing the Australian Open into a billion-dollar behemoth.
But already his moving and shaking is obvious, with Tiley's fingerprints all over the New York major despite Eric Butorac officially appointed as the US Open's first-year tournament director, replacing Stacey Allaster.
Tiley has even taken Butorac's big chair in the bowels of the Billie Jean Tennis Centre, pulling strings and using the Australian Open blueprint that accelerated the country's biggest annual sporting event into a mega-money global major.
From a Night with Roger Federer: An Icon Returns to New York to pre-tournament exhibition matches filling Arthur Ashe Stadium, the US Open is following the Australian Open template of progressing apace from a fortnight-long event to a three-week extravaganza.
"As long as I'm happy and the team is happy, then we'll be happy," Tiley told AAP in New York.
Former NRL chief executive Andrew Abdo offered a convincing introduction as the new TA boss at a pre-Open welcoming function at the Australian Consulate General in Manhattan.
But there is no doubt Abdo will have his work cut out as successor to his fellow South African, with Tiley intent on winning over the players, like he did in Melbourne, with Federer famously dubbing the Australian Open the Happy Slam for its joyous and relaxed atmosphere.
"The USTA has created a great platform to inspire further growth in tennis participation," Tiley said on his first day on the job.
"We want to work with everyone within the tennis family to grow the sport beyond what anyone thought possible."
Tiley's first point of business was to raise the US Open prize money purse to a record $150 million, up 20 per cent on last year in the single-biggest increase in tennis history.
The eye-watering riches on offer exceed Wimbledon, the French Open and dwarfs the Australian Open's 2026 pool of $111 million.
But this is just the start for Tiley, with the master innovator set to unveil a luxurious $1.25 billion player hub at Flushing Meadows next year.
Under Tiley, Australian officials led the way with a similar state-of-the art facility at Melbourne Park featuring multiple gyms, recharge spaces, lounge areas, a dedicated concierge to handle player needs and even hair salons and beauty clinics.
But the USTA's reply for the pampered stars will accommodate all that and more, including massive NBA-style personal lockers for every competitor and a revolutionary warm-up lap track on the top deck.
Abdo is already known to be quietly plotting his return of serve.
