One of the most exciting tennis tournaments currently being held on U.S. soil – the Miami Open – will kick off in just a few weeks. This prestigious ATP tour stop features a purse of over $1,000,000 for the winners of both the men’s and women’s matches, and has more than 64 entrants for both tournaments.

Unfamiliar with this particular sport or tourney? We’ve broken down everything you need to know about the upcoming Miami Open below.

When is the 2018 Miami Open?

This year’s tournament will take place between March 19 and April 1, with the Men’s Finals being held on the latter of the two.

Where is the 2018 Miami Open?

The Miami Open, as you can probably surmise from the name, takes place in the greater Miami, FL, area.  The matches themselves take place at the Tennis Center at Crandon Park, which is located in Key Biscayne, FL. Starting in 2019, the tournament will be held at the Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens, which is the current home of the Miami Dolphins.

Miami Open 2018 Tickets

Check out all Miami Open tickets on SeatGeek, or view upcoming matches below.

What’s the 2018 Miami Open Event Schedule?

The event itself takes place over the course of two weeks due to the unusually high number of players invited. The Miami Open will kick off on Monday, March 19. The rest of the event schedule is as follows:

Round Men’s Singles Schedule Women’s Singles Schedule
Qualifying Round 3/19 & 3/20 3/19 & 3/20
Round 1 3/21 & 3/22 3/20 & 3/21
Round 2 3/23 & 3/24 3/22 & 3/23
Round 3 3/25 & 3/26 3/24 & 3/25
Round 4 3/27 3/26
Quarterfinals 3/28 & 3/29 3/27 & 3/28
Semifinals 3/30 3/29
Finals 4/1 3/31

What to expect at the 2018 Miami Open

Given the fact that the surface at Crandon Park is a Laykold hardcourt, we should be in for some exciting action as the ball will likely play decently fast due to the lack of energy absorbed from the ball by the court itself. The ball will bounce higher than usual and players will be looking to apply as many different types of spin to the ball as possible. Coming off of the Australian Open, which uses a hardcourt as well, players should be fully adjusted to the surface which will likely make for some excellent matchups.

Over the past decade, the men’s tournament has been dominated by Serbian tennis sensation Novak Djokovic, who has won the tournament a whopping six times since 2007. However, Djokovic seems like a long shot to play in this year’s Open due to a recent surgery that he had on his hand. While his presence will be missed, it opens the door for other players to get a shot at the title.

Last year’s winner Roger Federer is one of the players likely to make noise in Southern Florida this year. Federer has experienced a career renaissance, having won three Grand Slam tournaments in the past year, with the most recent win coming in the Australian Open just two weeks ago. Another name that will be in the mix is Rafael Nadal, who has finished as the runner-up in the Miami Open five times since 2005.

On the women’s side of the tournament, the early favorite has to be Serena Williams. Williams decided not to play in this year’s Australian Open after the birth of her child but is set to return to the court in the upcoming Fed Cup later this week. Serena has won the tournament on eight different occasions, including a three-peat from 2013-2015. Belarusian player Victoria Azarenka is another name to keep an eye on in the upcoming tournament, as she’s won the tournament three times, with the most recent win coming back in 2016.