The Clay-Court swing kicked off with a pair of storied tournaments in Charleston and Bogota.
The top seed and defending champion ultimately prevailed at the Credit One Charleston Open, one of the most beloved stops on the WTA Tour Driven by Mercedes-Benz, and the favorite also won the title in Bogota. But there was plenty of drama on the road to those results, making for a highly entertaining week in North and South America before the tour heads to Europe for the remainder of the month.
Here were the highlights, and the most important things to know, from last week on the WTA Tour.
Star of the Swing
Jessica Pegula
Make it back-to-back for J-Peg.
Jessica Pegula entered this tournament as the defending champion and favorite, and though she was tested repeatedly all week, she powered through to a second consecutive title in the Lowcountry.
Following a very busy Sunshine swing in Indian Wells and Miami, Pegula could be excused for potentially running out of gas in her first clay tournament of 2026, especially considering her first four matches went three sets. (She came from behind in three of them.) Those four wins, which she won in four straight days, required 10 hours on court. It was on the fifth day, in the final, that she yielded her only straightforward result of the tournament -- an emphatic 6-2, 6-2 win over Yuliia Starodubtseva.
The World No. 5 defeated Top 20 players Diana Shnaider and Iva Jovic at Credit One Stadium, and her 5-0 record improved her overall mark to 24-4. Her 24 wins are the most on the WTA Tour Driven by Mercedes-Benz this year.
Pegula has now won two titles this year, after winning Dubai in February, and increased her career total to 11.
Honorable Mention: Marie Bouzkova won her third career title at the Copa Colsanitas Colsubsidio, coming from a set down in the final to beat Panna Udvardy 6-7 (7), 6-2, 6-2.
Breakthrough of the Week
Yuliia Starodubtseva
Coming into Charleston ranked 89th in the world, Starodubtseva moved into the main draw after a late withdrawal and made the most of her opportunity, winning five matches in five days to reach her first career WTA final. The round prior, she advanced to her first-ever WTA semifinal.
Four of those wins were over players ranked higher than her, and the most notable upset was her surprising 6-1, 6-4 win over former Australian Open champion Madison Keys in just 73 minutes.
The 26-year-old Ukrainian, who played collegiately at Old Dominion University and spent a year teaching at Westchester Country Club in New York, moved up to a career-high No. 53 in the PIF WTA Rankings.
Match of the Week
Jessica Pegula d. Yulia Putintseva, Charleston second round
Remember we mentioned that Pegula's first four matches took 10 hours? More than three of those hours came in her opener against Yulia Putintseva, in what was the longest win of her career.
After trading the first two sets, Putintseva ran out to a 3-0 lead in the decider. But as she would prove to do all week, Pegula was clutch in the biggest moments and took seven of the next nine games for the 4-6, 6-4, 7-5 win.
Pegula, who has developed a well-earned reputation as the queen of the three-setter, improved to 7-1 in third sets this season and 16-4 since the US Open. By week's end those marks would improve to 10-1 and 19-4, respectively.
Comeback of the Week
Yuan Yue d. Mayar Sherif, Charleston first round
Lucky loser Yuan Yue came from 6-2, 4-2 down to stun Mayar Sherif in this first-round classic. The 29-year-old Egyptian had a chance to close it out leading 6-5 in the third, but Yue saved a match point and narrowly won the deciding tiebreaker for the 2-6, 7-6 (4), 7-6 (5) comeback win. The match lasted 3 hours and 13 minutes.
Shot of the Week
Diana Shnaider's running forehand winner down the line
Diana Shnaider had a few brilliant shots in Charleston this week, but this one was our favorite.
Pushed deep into the corner by a Leylah Fernandez backhand on break point, Shnaider's return landed softly in the service box, and the approaching Fernandez picked it off and flicked it crosscourt. Shnaider sprinted to the other end of the court and hit a stunning forehand winner down the line.
"If you are gonna break, break in style," the commenter said after the point.
Agreed.
Upset of the Week
Jazmin Ortenzi d. Camila Osorio, Bogota second round
If not for Starodubtseva, Argentinian Jazmin Ortenzi likely would have won breakthrough of the week honors. Ranked No. 206 coming into Bogota, she came through qualifying and in her second-round match, knocked off No. 54 Camila Osorio 7-6 (4), 7-6 (5) for her first career Top 100 win. The upset also sent her to her first career WTA quarterfinal. She came from behind to beat Julia Riera in that match, but lost to top-seeded Bouzkova in the semifinal.
The semifinal run moved Ortenzi 42 spots in the rankings, to a career-high No. 164.
Feel-good win of the week
Bianca Andreescu gets back in the W column
It was encouraging to see Bianca Andreescu win her Charleston opener, her first main-draw win in eight months (hard to believe). The former US Open champion came from behind to beat Dalma Galfi 1-6, 6-4, 6-1 but lost in the second round to Sofia Kenin.
Feel-good moment of the week
From one mom to another [future] mom
After beating Dayana Yastremska in Charleston, Belinda Bencic had a sweet and encouraging message for soon-to-be mom Ons Jabeur.
"I'm very happy for her," Bencic said after her 6-2, 6-7 (5), 6-3 victory. "We are texting sometimes and I'm glad she's doing well. She's going to be an amazing mother. I think it was her big dream to have a baby, and I think it's amazing that athletes choose their family as well as their career."
First of the Week
Hanne Vandewinkel is on the board
Welcome to the WTA, Hanne! In her WTA main-draw debut, the 21-year-old Belgian beat countrywoman Sofia Costoulas in Bogota for her first career tour-level win.
Though it was a milestone victory, it was par for the course for Vandewinkel of late. Coming into the match she had won 19 of her previous 20 matches at the ITF level.