Racks and Raquets

For two weeks, New York becomes one very large tennis club. 🎾

The US Open is the main event. But somehow, the tennis has spilled everywhere.

So we made the list.

The places, matches + moments worth knowing about during US Open week.

Save this one. You’re going to need it.

Want all the dates, locations + details in one place? Comment **PLAY** and we’ll send them your way.

Love is earned... with a good second serve.

The jump from good Mahjong to great Mahjong isn’t necessarily memorizing more rules.
It’s learning to notice more.

During the Charleston, how you organize your tiles can give away more than you think.
If every new tile immediately gets moved next to its matching suit, number, flower or pair, an observant player can start picking up clues about what you’re keeping and what direction you’re heading.

The goal isn’t secrecy for secrecy’s sake. It’s simply this: don’t give away information you don’t have to.

You receive six tiles from every player during the Charleston—but the six from the player to your right are different because they’re consecutive.
You’re not going to know their hand from six tiles, but you may be able to start ruling things out.
Great players don’t just look at what was passed. They remember who passed it.

Early flexibility is good Mahjong. Late indecision isn’t.

By the final full wall, you should know which hand you’re pursuing. Holding tiles for multiple possibilities means you’re using valuable rack space on backup plans while the number of tiles keeps shrinking.

Stay flexible early. Commit when the table tells you it’s time.

Before you call, look at the card and ask yourself:
Could this exact exposure belong to more than one hand?
Ideally, the answer is yes.
Sometimes you still need to make that call. But recognize the trade: you’re not only gaining a tile. You’re giving away information.

Your rack tells you what you want.
The table tells you whether you can actually get it.
Pay attention to what’s being discarded throughout the game.

Discards combined with exposures start telling you stories about everyone else’s hands too.
The better you get, the less time you’ll spend staring at your own rack.

The only thing better than winning is NOT LOSING.
If your hand has become realistically impossible and you cannot pivot, you have to play defense.
This is the wall game: your goal becomes getting the game to the end of the wall without anyone declaring Mahjong.

The common thread through all six?
Great Mahjong players don’t necessarily see better tiles.
They see more information.
Comment TABLE and we’ll send you this guide to save for

Back to school: Majoring in mahj. Minor in resting mahj face.

Pillow: Furbish Studio
Tiles + Racks: The Mahjong Line
Tiger’s eye dice: Racks & Raquets

Do you stick to the rules?