A sprawling racquet sports complex under construction near Brier Creek has struck a partnership with Roland-Garros, the organization behind the French Open, and will import red clay directly from Europe to build courts that meet the tournament's official guidelines. Swing Racquet + Paddle now expects to open in 2028, the latest in a string of delays for a project first pitched to Raleigh back in 2018.
The deal makes Swing Racquet + Paddle the only Roland-Garros club in the United States, according to Axios, which reported that the Roland-Garros International Development program is led by Aymeric Labaste and has previously signed similar club affiliations in Brazil, China and Japan. Swing founder Rob Autry told the outlet the venue must build its clay courts to Roland-Garros specifications and will import the clay itself directly from Europe, where the surface is traditionally made from crushed red brick. Autry said red clay plays as a slower surface that lets players control and slow down the ball, a different feel than the asphalt or concrete courts most American players grow up on. “People will not need to travel to Europe to experience Roland-Garros,” Autry said, per the same report.
Beyond the courts themselves, the partnership is expected to bring activations ranging from high-level tournaments to beginner lessons, held throughout the year, Autry said. The 44-acre facility is being built on city-owned land at 6121 Mt. Herman Road and will ultimately include dozens of tennis, padel and pickleball courts alongside the new clay surfaces.
A Project Years in the Making — and Still Delayed
Swing Racquet + Paddle was first conceived in 2018 by local entrepreneurs Rob Autry and Jason DeGroff, with an original target opening date of 2022, according to the Triangle Business Journal. That timeline slipped repeatedly through pandemic disruptions and planning hurdles, pushing estimated openings to 2024, then 2026, and now 2028, even though official groundbreaking on the site happened back in August 2024. Axios reports that significant construction is now beginning and that the project has all required permits in hand.
When complete, the complex is billed as the world's largest racquet sports campus, spanning nearly 100 courts and playing spaces across those 44 acres, per the World Record Academy. That count includes 28 tennis courts, 25 pickleball courts, 16 padel courts, four beach courts and a ping-pong lounge, spread across indoor, outdoor and covered spaces. The Sports and Fitness Industry Association has identified pickleball as the fastest-growing sport in the country, with 4.8 million active participants, a trend cited by the World Record Academy as a key driver behind hybrid complexes like Swing that blend traditional tennis with newer paddle sports.
City Money and a Long-Term Lease
The City of Raleigh pledged $10 million in financial assistance toward the venue, which sits on city-owned land under a long-term lease, according to Axios Raleigh's February 2024 reporting. That 44-acre parcel had previously been valued by the city at $2.5 million. Local news station CBS 17, as relayed by SportsEvents Media Group, has reported that the project represents a $125 million total investment expected to generate $360 million in economic impact over its first five years and create roughly 300 jobs, with developers anticipating more than one million visitors annually.
Visit Raleigh has also detailed plans for food and beverage offerings curated by celebrity chef Fabio Viviani, a pro shop run in partnership with Wilson Sporting Goods, and an onsite Wilson research center, alongside a two-acre lawn and walking trails. City records show the project, listed under permit number ASR-0044-2022, underwent Tier Two/Three Administrative Site Review covering paved parking, multi-building structures, greenspace trails and North Carolina Fire Code compliance, with additional utility extensions and traffic access approvals required.
Public Courts Are Getting a Boost Too
Swing's private buildout isn't the only racquet sports investment happening around Raleigh right now. The city recently broke ground on eight new courts at Biltmore Hills Park, funded by $6.75 million from a voter-approved 2022 Parks Bond and marking the city's first new municipal tennis courts in 30 years, bringing that park's total court count to 16. Neighboring Durham has made similar moves, spending roughly $1.39 million to install smart LED lighting at Rock Quarry Park and Whippoorwill Park, upgrades that Hoodline reported include remote scheduling and energy-efficient fixtures. Together, the public investments point to a broader regional appetite for racquet sports infrastructure even as Swing's much larger private venture continues to work through delays on its way to a planned 2028 opening.
