49 WWW.CHARLESTONWOMENPODCAST.COM | WWW.READCW.COM | WWW.INSTAGRAM.COM/CHARLESTONWOMEN Maybank can feel a little like Cheers for tennis players—everyone knows your name, or at least your tennis nickname. I'm Abomb. The opportunities to play are endless. There are night leagues, day leagues and CALTA, a longtime Charleston league filling courts every Tuesday morning. If your team wins, the path continues: local playoffs, then state championships, then sectionals, regionals and sometimes even nationals. I play 4.5 tennis and haven't missed a season in 20 years. By now I've probably played on close to 250 teams in Charleston. The game here is played yearround on outdoor courts, whether it's 100 degrees in August or a freezing January morning. When rain hits, you'll see women out there with beach towels and leaf blowers trying to dry courts just so a match can happen. THE HONOR SYSTEM Club and recreational racquet sports run on an honor system. Players call their own lines, which means your opponent is also the referee. Most of the time it works beautifully. Sometimes the competitive lines blur. The integrity of these games relies on player honesty. Charleston is a small town, and the sports circles are even smaller. I learned early on to play hard but stay classy—because the person across the net today might be the one walking into the delivery room when your baby is about to arrive. True story. WELLNESS + BEAUTY THE GREAT EQUALIZER Tennis courts bring together women from different backgrounds, careers and sometimes very different economic worlds—and somehow the game becomes the great equalizer. My mom is 79 and still plays four times a week. My stepdad Carl is 87 and plays just as often. Around here, tennis isn't just a hobby—it's something people keep doing for life. Meanwhile pickleball has surged across Charleston, often sharing the same facilities. Tennis players may grumble about the pop of the paddle, but most admit there's room for both games. Pickleball is often advertised as easier on the knees, though after a few quick points many players might debate that claim. WHERE TO START For anyone wondering where to start, Charleston makes it easy. Much of the beginner pipeline runs through April Gift, USTA local program director, who organizes clinics, leagues and community play days through the Facebook group Lowcountry Tennis Enthusiasts. Intro programs like Tennis 101 clinics and beginner round robins pop up across the area—from Snee Farm, where participants even receive a new racquet, to the Hawk's Nest courts in Hanahan. Pickleball has its own network too, with Facebook groups like Charleston Pickleball helping players find games across the city. For anyone curious about the sport's deeper history, the Charleston Tennis Museum at 55 Spring St. offers a small but fascinating look at the game's past. In Charleston, racquet sports have a way of turning strangers into teammates—and teammates into lifelong friends. Resources: Credit One Charleston Open • USTA South Carolina • Charleston Area Ladies Tennis Association (CALTA) • Lowcountry Tennis Enthusiasts (coordinated by April Gift) • Charleston Tennis Museum, 55 Spring St. • Pickleball Charleston, info@pickleballcharlestonsc.com • WePickle Charleston, wepicklecharleston.com • LTP Daniel Island Pickleball, (843) 849-5300
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