Serena Seeded 17th

am800-sports-tennis-us open-serena-wiliams-1.6396514 LONDON, ENGLAND - JULY 01: Serena Williams of The United States celebrates victory during the Ladies Singles second round match against Christina McHale of the United States on day five of the Wimbledon Lawn Tennis Championships at the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club on July 1, 2016 in London, England. (Photo by Clive Brunskill/Getty Images) (Serena Williams during a match against Christina McHale on day five of the Wimbledon Lawn Tennis Championships July 1, 2016 in London, England. (Photo by Clive Brunskill/Getty Images))

The U.S. Tennis Association has seeded Serena Williams No. 17 for the U.S. Open, nine spots higher than her current ranking of No. 26.

Williams is one place behind her older sister, Venus.

The draw for the tournament is today play begins Monday.

This will be the third Grand Slam tournament of Williams' return to competition since she gave birth to a daughter during the 2017 U.S. Open last September, then dealt with health complications.

The 23-time major champion, who turns 37 next month, was the runner-up at Wimbledon in July.