TENNIS IDOL

Oudin Out of Open, Still in Public Eye

Teen star has fans “in the palm of her hands.”

Melanie Oudin, the 17-year-old "instant star" of the tennis world, ended her run at this year's U.S. Open Wednesday night as spectacularly as she began it. Oudin wowed crowds as she won her first four matches (all against Russians), which catapulted her from obscurity to a Tonight Show booking in a week. Her streak didn't last, though, and on Wednesday, Caroline Wozniacki sent the blonde phenom home with an "awkward" 6-2, 6-2 defeat in which "Oudin made only 11 winners and committed 43 unforced errors, a disastrous ratio," ESPN reports. Still, observers say that despite letting pressure get to her head, Oudin's got staying power: Tony Bennett, singer and avid tennis fan, raves, "She has the crowd in the palm of her hands… She's going to be a permanent star."