Charleston helps kick off clay season, and matches ATP 500s with historic prize purse

The Sunshine Swing is almost over, but some of the best WTA players will stay in North America for an additional week to compete in a historic edition of the Credit One Charleston Open.

Here is everything you need to know about the WTA tour’s premier green-clay event:

• Dates: March 30-April 5
• Venue: Credit One Stadium
• Defending Champion: Jessica Pegula (def. Sofia Kenin, 6-3, 7-5)
• Top Seeds: Pegula, Ekaterina Alexandrova, Belinda Bencic, Iva Jovic, Madison Keys

Where to Watch

The 2026 Credit One Charleston Open streams live and on-demand on the Tennis Channel App, which offers:

• Every main-draw singles and doubles match​, live and on demand
• Desk interviews​​
• Highlights
• Match in 15 Minutes

Tennis Channel Live Schedule

• Monday, March 30: 11 a.m. - 10 p.m. ET (First round)
• Tuesday, March 31: 11 a.m. - 10 p.m. ET (First and second round)
• Wednesday, April 1: 11 a.m. - 10 p.m. ET (Second round)
• Thursday, April 2: 11 a.m. - 10 p.m. ET (Third round)
• Friday, April 3:
  • 11 a.m. - 5 p.m. ET (Quarterfinals)
  • 5 p.m. - 6 p.m. ET (Tennis Channel Live)
  • 6 p.m. - 8 p.m. ET (Quarterfinals)
• Saturday, April 4:
  • 12 p.m. - 1 p.m. ET (Tennis Channel Live)
  • 1 p.m. - 5 p.m. ET (Semifinals)
  • 5 p.m. - 5:30 p.m. ET (Tennis Channel Live)
• Sunday, April 5:
  • 12 p.m. - 12:30 p.m. ET (Tennis Channel Live)
  • 12:30 p.m. - 2 p.m. ET (Doubles final)
  • 2 p.m. - 3 p.m. ET (Tennis Channel Live)
  • 3 p.m. - 5 p.m. ET (Singles final)

A Historic Prize Pot

The Credit One Charleston Open, a WTA 500 event, announced it will offer $2.5 million in prize money, equaling that which is awarded at all ATP 500 tournaments.

The singles champion will earn $354,345, up from $164,000 in 2025.

“It’s a commitment not just to today’s players, but to the future of the sport,” according to the tournament website. “Behind that commitment is a thoughtful approach designed to support every athlete in the field, both on and off the court.”

Top Players In Attendance

At the forefront of those competing for that purse is top seed Jessica Pegula, who is set to mount her Charleston title defense after a scintillating start to her 2026 season. After reaching her first Australian Open semifinal, she picked up a fourth career WTA 1000 title at the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships.

Firmly back inside the Top 5, Pegula posted strong results in the Sunshine Swing, losing two close quarterfinal matches to AO champion Elena Rybakina at the BNP Paribas Open and Miami Open.

The second and third seeds are Ekaterina Alexandrova and Belinda Bencic, respectively.

(Editor's Note: World No. 6 Amanda Anisimova was scheduled to compete in Charleston, but withdrew over the weekend due to injury.)

Waving the 🇺🇸 Flag

The top seeds are flanked by a contingent of in-form Americans, all of whom could find themselves lifting the trophy by week’s end.

18-year-old Iva Jovic will be making her Charleston Open debut after making her major breakthrough at the Australian Open. As the No. 29 seed, she stunned world No. 8 Jasmine Paolini en route to the quarterfinals. The run helped her make her Top 20 debut on the WTA rankings.

If Jovic represents youth, Madison Keys represents experience, the 2019 champion joining the fray in the hopes of kickstarting her season after early exits from Indian Wells in Miami. The 2025 Australian Open has historically performed well on both green and red clay, reaching the quarterfinals of the Mutua Madrid Open last year.

Diana Shnaider, Anna Kalinskaya and Leylah Fernandez round out the Top 25 contingent in the Lowcountry—eight in all.