Twice is nice!

April 5, 2026

Jess Pegula is once again a champion in Charleston.

Taking the final 6-2, 6-2 over Yuliia Starodubtseva, Pegula earned both her second consecutive Credit One Charleston Open title and her second tournament victory of the 2026 WTA season.

"Today I think I was just I was playing much better and so I was like really like locked in and focused like 'ok, like let's get this done,'" Pegula said. "I was feeling much better today so that was the goal."

A straight-sets victory in the final could lead one to believe that it was a comfortable ride in Charleston for Pegula, but this title defense proved to be quite the contrary. In her first tournament on clay in the 2026 WTA season, Pegula was tested in all five matches she played, and had to persevere to earn three-set victories in each of her first four matches.

"Sometimes when you win a tournament, you kind of romanticize like 'oh that was so easy,'" Pegula said of last year's Charleston title. "I shifted my mindset a little bit coming back as defending champion. Last year it wasn't like everything went perfect, so I think that actually kind of helped me get through a lot of really tough matches this week."

There is much to be gained for Pegula by overcoming all the tough matches this week. With a couple months of clay court tournaments ahead, finding different ways to grind out victories is something that Pegula thinks will be critical to any success in the near term.

"I really do think I'd rather have it this way going into clay season for sure because you're gonna have matches like this," Pegula said of the three-set victories in Charleston. "It's honestly great for my clay court season - as long as I can stay healthy, keep adjusting and keeping having that mindset."

Congratulations Jess and best of luck in the upcoming clay court season!