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Hard Rock Stadium Makeover Underway To Host Miami Open Next Year

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MIAMI GARDENS (CBSMiami) - It'll be a whole new world next year for the Miami Open as they say goodbye to their current at Crandon Park at Key Biscayne and hello to their new home which is already home to the Miami Dolphins.

Tennis superstar Serena Williams, an eight-time Miami Open Champion, was on hand to break ground last week. On Tuesday, CBS4 News got a complete tour of the new digs and how they came to be.

"He said we're gonna put a tennis center and tennis court in a football stadium and I think that we all thought at the time he's nuts, one thing about visionaries is they see things others don't see," recounted the tour guide.

He was talking about Dolphins owner Stephen Ross who spent $500 million on stadium renovations and another $50 million to bring tennis there.

The centerpiece is a new center court and 14,000 seat stadium in the middle of the football arena that comes with major improvements to the site.

"It's a great opportunity for tennis to expand, for tennis to grow and expand, there are more courts, more space," said tournament director James Blake.

When complete, there will be 30 show and practice courts, a sponsorship village with entertainment space, and cushy new comfortable seats that are more tennis appropriate.

Blake said there'll also be changes that cater to the luxury level with a newly upgraded club space.

A makeover, that kept the Miami Open, in Miami.

"To all the fans thank you for all the memories at Crandon Park for 30 years, it's been an unbelievable experience there but please come out to Hardrock Stadium and see how much of an upgrade it's going to be," said Blake.

By Rielle Creighton

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