Omaha tennis racquet stringer Joe Heydt works at US Open

Joe Heydt owns the Racquet Corner in Omaha and has been stringing racquets for more than 30 years. He’s what you might call an “expert stringer” and he’s wrapping up his 16th US Open tour as he strings Wilson racquets for players. We spoke to him during his time at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center.

What is your favorite part about the US Open?

The excitement of evening matches. The sound of a capacity crowd roaring after a big moment in a night match is incredible. You can hear it from any part of the grounds, and if you’re close to the stadium, you can feel the rumble in your chest.

How is this tournament different from others?

What makes this tournament different for me personally is driving in New York. During COVID times, we decided to rent our own vans so we could keep all of our desk staff and stringers in a bubble. The convenience of leaving and returning to our hotel, rather than having to rely on the staff shuttle was a game changer. That means some of us have to be van drivers. It’s not like driving in Omaha. The horn is used much more often.

Do you have time to watch any tennis action?

Yes, I can pop out occasionally if I don’t have any racquets due. I don’t tend to do that very often however. We have a television in our stringing room that can pull up any match on any court. We can even watch the practice courts if we want to. Once you have that, then it’s so easy to stay where you are and watch all day. Call me lazy.

What other things do you try to do in NYC?

I’m a big foodie. I like to seek out the best of whatever type of food I’m feeling like when I hit the city. This year I took an Uber to a restaurant called Laut. They do amazing Malaysian food, and I was on the hunt for a bowl of curry laksa. It’s a soup with a spicy chicken and coconut milk broth, then they add noodles, chicken, tofu and veggies. Worth the trip.

Approximately how many racquets will you string during your time at the US Open?

If we stay close to last year’s numbers, then we expect to do about 7,000 this year. We have 22 total stringers. I’ll let you do the math.  We string about two and a half times the number of frames I would string at my Omaha shop (The Racquet Corner) in an entire year.

Anything else you’d like to add?

The members on our team are an elite crew chosen from all over the world. Our team this year has members from 13 different countries. It truly is an honor to be on the best team in the world.