Charleston's Padel Boom: pATL Mt. Pleasant & The Point
Charleston's Padel Boom: pATL Mt. Pleasant & The Point
Atlanta's pATL brand and a homegrown club at Trophy Lakes are set to quadruple the Lowcountry's padel court count
The Lowcountry is about to become one of the most interesting padel markets in the Southeast. Two new clubs — one from Atlanta's fast-growing pATL brand, one a homegrown social club at a waterski lake on Johns Island — are in development around Charleston, and together they would take the metro from three padel courts to twelve.
Charleston Is Getting Two New Padel Clubs
For a city with Charleston's racquet-sports pedigree, padel has been a long time coming. South Carolina's first public padel court opened at LTP Daniel Island, and until this year that was essentially the whole story: one facility, a handful of outdoor courts, and a lot of curious tennis players.
That's changing fast. As the Post and Courier reported, pATL — the Atlanta-born racket club company founded by former college tennis teammates Andrew Herring and Kevin Ye — is building its largest location yet in Mount Pleasant. Meanwhile, southwest of downtown, The Point Racket and Social Club is preparing two courts at Trophy Lakes on Johns Island. Two very different projects, arriving at almost exactly the same time, in a metro that fits the profile we described in our look at padel's growth across the Southeast: a year-round playable climate, deep racquet culture, and fast-growing suburbs.
pATL Mt. Pleasant: Charleston's First Dedicated Indoor Club
pATL Mt. Pleasant
pATL built its reputation in Atlanta, where its original club runs four outdoor World Padel Tour-spec courts and holds a perfect 5.0 Google rating. Mount Pleasant is a different kind of project: six indoor padel courts under 30-foot ceilings, a seventh outdoor stadium court, and four squash courts — two singles and two hardball doubles — plus a gym, recovery space, and a co-working mezzanine. It will be the company's biggest club, larger than either Atlanta or its Louisville location, and the first dedicated indoor padel facility in the Charleston area.
The indoor part matters more than the raw court count. Charleston summers are punishing for outdoor racquet sports — heat indexes over 100 and afternoon thunderstorms that wipe out evening bookings. Six climate-controlled courts turn padel into a twelve-month sport here, and the co-working mezzanine signals that pATL wants members hanging around all day, not just booking a court and leaving. The club is targeting a summer 2026 opening, per the most recent local reporting; a final street address hasn't been announced yet.
Courts: 7 | Type: Mixed | Ceiling: 30ft
The Point Racket and Social Club: Padel at Trophy Lakes
The Point Racket and Social Club
If pATL is the big-brand play, The Point is the homegrown one. Founder Nick Saltmarsh, a former college tennis player, is putting two outdoor courts at Trophy Lakes, the lakeside recreation spot on Johns Island better known for waterskiing and wakeboarding. The setting alone separates it from every other padel project in the state — courts by the water, minutes from James Island and Folly Beach.
The access model is the real story. No membership will be required: courts are pay-to-play from day one, with a limited number of memberships offering priority access to prime-time slots. Beginner clinics and social round-robin tournaments are planned from the start, which makes The Point the obvious entry point for Lowcountry players who have never touched a padel racket. The club originally targeted a spring 2026 opening; as of midsummer the courts haven't opened yet, so keep an eye on the club page for updates.
Courts: 2 | Type: Outdoor
Where Charleston Padel Stands Today
LTP-Daniel Island
Until either new club opens, Charleston padel means LTP Daniel Island. The facility that hosts the Credit One Charleston Open opened South Carolina's first public padel court and has since grown to three outdoor courts, with a steady pipeline of tennis converts. If you want to get on court this week, this is the place — our guide to where to play padel in Charleston covers booking details and what to expect.
Courts: 3 | Type: Outdoor | Rating: 4.7★
From Three Courts to Twelve
If both projects deliver, the Charleston metro goes from three padel courts to twelve — six of them indoor — in roughly a year. That's the same one-two pattern that built momentum in other fast-growing markets: a proven out-of-state brand expanding in, plus a local entrepreneur betting on the community layer. Charleston brings something extra, though. Between LTP's tournament pedigree, a climate that allows outdoor play most of the year, and two new clubs designed around very different price points, the Lowcountry has a plausible claim to becoming the padel capital of South Carolina before long. We'll be tracking both openings.
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