Charleston’s Big Shift In Clay, Dates, Stars And $2.5M At Stake

The WTA Tour’s clay-court season begins in Charleston, with the Credit One Charleston Open set to run from qualifying through the final at the historic WTA 500 event. The tournament remains the largest women’s clay-court competition in North America and continues to serve as a key stop before Madrid, Rome and the French Open.

The Charleston Open first took place in 1973, when it was known as the Family Circle Cup and staged on Hilton Head Island. It has also won WTA 500 Tournament of the Year honors for four straight years, underlining its status as one of the tour’s most respected venues.

Dates and schedule

Qualifying begins on Saturday, with first-round main-draw play starting on Monday. The event runs through Sunday, when both finals will be played.

1. Qualifying: Saturday and Sunday
2. First round: Monday and Tuesday
3. Second round: Tuesday and Wednesday
4. Third round: Thursday
5. Quarterfinals: Friday
6. Semifinals: Saturday
7. Final: Sunday

The doubles final is scheduled first at 12 p.m. ET, followed by the singles final not before 2:30 p.m. ET. The doubles draw also starts alongside the singles main draw and continues through the championship match on Sunday.

Who is playing

The singles field features a 48-player draw, made up of direct entries, qualifiers and wild cards. World No. 5 Jessica Pegula returns as the defending champion and leads a strong field that includes several Top 20 players.

Other notable names in the main draw include Ekaterina Alexandrova, Belinda Bencic, Iva Jovic, Madison Keys and Diana Shnaider. Former major winners Jelena Ostapenko and Sofia Kenin are also in the field, along with Leylah Fernandez and Hailey Baptiste.

The wild-card list adds more attention, with Sloane Stephens, Bianca Andreescu, Jennifer Brady and Paula Badosa all receiving entries. The top 16 seeds will get byes into the second round, which gives the highest-ranked players an immediate advantage in the opening days.

Notable withdrawals and additions

Several players have withdrawn from the tournament, including Amanda Anisimova, Emma Navarro and Daria Kasatkina. The field also changed after a few late moves, with replacements added to keep the draw full.

1. Withdrawals: Amanda Anisimova, Elise Mertens, Emma Navarro, Jelena Ostapenko, Maya Joint, Xinyu Wang, Cristina Bucsa, Varvara Gracheva, Daria Kasatkina, Beatriz Haddad Maia and Magda Linette
2. Main-draw additions: Dalma Galfi, Ajla Tomljanovic, Anastasia Zakharova, Taylor Townsend, Renata Zarazua, Alycia Parks, Katie Volynets, Lulu Sun and Yue Yuan

Defending champions and recent history

Pegula’s 2025 title run was a milestone, because it was her 11th appearance at the event and her first Charleston crown. She beat Danielle Collins, Alexandrova and Kenin on her way to the trophy, then completed a comeback in the final after trailing 5-1 in the second set.

That victory made Pegula the 10th American to win the Charleston title, joining a list that includes legends such as Chris Evert, Martina Navratilova, Serena Williams and Venus Williams. In doubles, Jelena Ostapenko and Erin Routliffe are the reigning champions after their win over Caroline Dolehide and Desirae Krawczyk.

Prize money and rankings points

This year’s edition marks a major financial step for the event. Charleston has doubled its prize pool to $2.5 million, making it the first standalone WTA 500 event to proactively offer equal prize money in line with ATP 500 requirements.

Tournament owner Ben Navarro said the investment reflects the quality of women’s tennis and its growing fan interest. He said, “Offering equal prize money is about respecting the players and the work they put in, and aligning the tournament with the value of the game.”

The prize distribution and ranking points are as follows:

The doubles champions will collect $117,320 and 500 ranking points, making the event important for both singles specialists and established doubles teams.