New York, August 28, 2009 – Beer and tennis go together very well, so Heineken teamed up with the USTA to host the US Open kick-off party on a steamy Friday night.  James Blake and Venus Williams came to let off a little pre-tournament steam, while the rest of us danced to the tunes by DJ M.O.S. and sipped quite a few cold ones – miniature kegs were everywhere at the party, and beer-toting waiters roamed the vast warehouse space, making sure nobody was parched.

We quizzed some of the non-athletes at the bash about their skills on the tennis court.  Penn Badgley says his tennis skills are rusty.  “I haven’t played since I was about ten,” the Gossip Girl star told us.  (Sipping a Heineken, Penn admitted that his beer-drinking skills are “pretty polished.”)   Saturday Night Live comic Kenan Thompson said his tennis skills are “whack;” Olivia Palermo and boyfriend Johannes Huebl play frequently and are “really good,” and Emmy Rossum says that while she is a lousy tennis player, she enjoys watching others who are not.  We’ll second that.  

Photos: Luisa Johns/PKI