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.
Right behind her is world No. 6 Amanda Anisimova. Anisimova, who on Friday announced a coaching change, is aiming to back up her breakthrough 2025 season, during which she reached back-to-back Grand Slam finals at Wimbledon and the US Open.
The 24-year-old completed a box set of Grand Slam quarterfinal appearances at the 2026 Australian Open and reached the semifinals in Dubai, where she pushed Pegula to three sets.
