The Royal Kona Resort Tennis Club — Kailua-Kona, Hawaii

Tennis Club Courts

Open to the general public, the Royal Kona Resort Tennis Club in Kailua-Kona, Hawaii, is home to 4 renovated Latexite hard courts, 3 with lights.

Find the Royal Kona Resort Tennis Club, oceanfront at 75-5852 Alii Drive, Kailua-Kona, Hawaii.

Tennis Club Management

Newly managed by USTA Hawaii Pacific, Inc., players of all ages and levels can enjoy USTA flagship programs and more.

Tennis Club Staff

Meet the new Royal Kona Resort Tennis Club USTA Staff, Director of Tennis, Albert Murata, and Assistant Professional, Terry Maruyama.

You could find Director of Tennis, Albert Murata, stringing racquets in the AM Stringing Pro Shop, teaching on the courts, coaching a youth tennis team, or playing league tennis! He has a long history in the tennis community from Kona to Oahu.

Assistant Professional, Terry Maruyama, is always standing ready to teach lessons and introduce you to Royal Kona Resort Tennis Club members and others in the Kailua-Kona, Hawaii tennis community.

Tennis Club Website Features

For full access to the Royal Kona Resort Tennis Club website features, including court bookings and lesson registrations:

USTA Members — sign in with your USTA membership email and password.

Non-USTA Members — sign up for a free account, then sign in.

Royal Kona Resort Tennis Club Membership

Enhance your Kailua-Kona, Hawaii tennis experience with the benefits of a Royal Kona Resort Tennis Club Membership!

Membership Benefits

Free court usage with online advance court booking privileges and discounts on lessons, AM Stringing Pro Shop, racquet stringing, and more.

USTA Flagship Program — Play and Learn Tennis

Now offering affordable USTA Play and Learn Tennis classes for youth and adults right here in Kailua-Kona, Hawaii.

All abilities are welcome, and the program is available to players ages five and up.

USTA Play and Learn Classes

For more information, including a list of classes: USTA Play and Learn Tennis

Royal Kona Resort Tennis Club Website & Information

Visit the Royal Kona Resort Tennis Club for more information.

We look forward to seeing you on the courts!

Events & Happenings

December 19, 2021 – Grand Slam Club Championship Mixer

After 12 rounds of play, 20 participants played in different themes that represented the four Grand Slam professional tournaments played throughout the year. Each round was timed for 12 minutes, and the games were tallied. 

• Australian Open – The serving team had to start each point in the Australian formation.

Champion – Derek Inaba

• French Open – All players had to start each point in the 2-back formation.

Champion – David Schulberg

• Wimbledon – The server and a receiver had to use a wood racquet.

Champions – Mauri Galvez, Derek Inaba, and Stephanie Place

• US Open – Some players receive a superpower handicap forcing their opponents to play under unusual circumstances. 

Champions – Kyle Datta and Robert Lozano

At the conclusion of the event, Derek Inaba was awarded the overall Grand Slam title. Cathy Dreger received the “crying towel” award for her effort on the court!

December 4-5, 2021 – Ekolu League Sectionals

With less than a week’s notice, the 8.0 RKRTC Elua team was invited to participate in Sectionals due to another team’s last-minute cancellation. Now we had three (3) teams representing RKRTC in a field of 15 teams total!  

Unfortunately, it was a wet weekend at Waikoloa. In the end, the rain prevailed, and the event was declared “unfinished.” 

When the players finally took the court on Saturday, the matches went fast due to the modified 6-game set format. Almost all the matches were completed, then the rain came back during the last match of the day.  

On Sunday, matches were supposed to start at 7:30, but after multiple updated start times, the event was declared “unfinished” at 11:45.

The One Positive Aspect of Sectionals

It was still a pleasant experience. It reminded me of how things were before COVID – seeing familiar faces, catching up with friends, and competing against different players for the first time!

October 10-November 7, 2021 – Ekolu League

The Ekolu league season concluded this past weekend. There were two teams respectively in the 7.0 and 8.0 divisions. The club formed all of these teams, which also made up the entire West Hawaii District league. The teams played five matches, and the top team from each division advanced to the Sectionals Championships on December 4-5 at the Fairmont Orchid.

• 7.0 Division – Both teams were created by a lottery system, where players were randomly selected. Of course, spouses were allowed to be on the same team. After the fourth match of the season, the standings were tied at 2-2. It came down to the decisive mixed doubles in the end, and it even went down to the final match tiebreaker!
  • 1^st Place – RKCTC Blue – Regen McManus (captain), Stephanie Place, Carol Spierling, Jenny Peterman, Sue Gianlorenzo, Kyle Datta, Javier Pinedo, Mauri Galvez, and Ron Rogers.
  • RKRTC White – Kathy Gunther (captain), Lisa Malapit, Karen Foster, Heidi Stromberg, Harry Harrison, Tyrone Crockwell, Kirk Shorte, and Doug Dierenfield.

• 8.0 Division – The formation of these two teams started with a husband and wife who were willing to split up and form individual teams. Chris and Kam Oi Wigen recruited some of their friends and former teammates to make the league happen. At least, before the season started, it guaranteed that the Wigen family would advance to Sectionals!
  • 1^st Place – RKRTC Ekahi – Kam Oi Wigen (captain), Jennifer Hiro, Fletcher Olson, Joni Izumi-Nakamoto, Kari Kimura, Brandy Fujisaka, Derek Inaba, Jeff Kam, Stefan Fromm, Gary Arao, Robert Lozano, and Albert Murata.
  • RKRTC Elua – Jennifer Torcato (captain), Crystal Mather, Susan Gianlorenzo, Lovette Llantos, Beth Silva, Erin Byrne, Chris Wigen, Errol Llantos, Tony Doliente, Mauri Galvez, and Bob Borns.

A special thanks to Regen, Kathy, Kam Oi, and Jennifer for volunteering as captains for their teams!

Good luck to the teams advancing to the Sectional Championships . . . GO RKRTC!!

October 2-November 13, 2021 – Fall Intraclub Doubles League

Thirty-six members participated in the Fall Intraclub Doubles League. The league attracted some new and existing club members that played competitive matches in a social atmosphere. The 7-week league was played on Saturdays, which kept the courts busy throughout the day.

The format grouped four players each week of similar skill levels. Three sets were played with rotating partners after each set. In the end, each player earned a score based on the number of games won with each partner.

Skill levels ranged from 2.5-4.0, and four groups were formed accordingly. Most players played within their group, and some players crossed over and played in other groups. I had “fill-in” players who were able to step in when someone couldn’t play, including yours truly!  

The goal of the league was to play at least 6 matches . . . some played all 7 matches! Everyone who played at least 6 matches was eligible to win the 1^st and 2^nd Place awards.

As a special bonus, Jennifer Torcato (Big Island Grill) donated two gift certificates. A drawing was held, and the winners were Kari Kimura ($20 gift certificate) and Sue Gianlorenzo (Free mud pie).

Here are the final results based on the average number of games won each week.

GROUP 1 1st Place – Lorena Clever 2nd Place – Caiden Mireles	GROUP 2 1st Place – Javier Pinedo 2nd Place – Rebecca Logan
GROUP 3 1st Place – Harry Harrison 2nd Place – Richard Vezina	GROUP 4 1st Place – Eri Byrne 2nd Place – Stefan Fromm

July 18-August 25, 2021 – 40+ Mixed Doubles 8.0 League Season

The Royal Kona Resort Tennis Club team defeated the only other West Hawaii team called Motley Crew. They played a total of 5 times and won 4 of them. They will proudly represent the Big Island as the only team from the East Hawaii and West Hawaii districts at the Sectional Championships!

The Fairmont Orchid will be the host site for the Sectional Championships and will hold it on September 18-19. On the team are the following club members – Norine Parish, Kari Kimura, Kam Oi Wigen, Joni Izumi-Nakamoto, Jennifer Hiro, Jennifer Torcato, Rance Tobara, John McCaskill, Kaipo Parish, Chris Wigen, Derek Inaba, and Albert Murata.

July 17, 2021 – Summer Green Ball Tournament

Some of Hilo’s rising stars came out for the day to compete in the 1-day tournament. Ten juniors, ages 10-12, each played 4 matches in a round-robin format.

There were two players with 4-0 undefeated records, and the tiebreaker went down to the highest percentage of sets won! Khloe Yoshimoto came out on top, and Lia Kobayakawa had a close second-place finish.

Lia also received the sportsmanship award voted by her peers, and all the players received souvenir bag tags and prizes!

July 11 – August 1st, 2021 Annual Breakfast at Wimbledon

The morning started bright and early at 8:00 am. All the club members came dressed for the occasion in “Wimbledon whites” and took the courts. We played 7 rounds in a mix-and-match round-robin format.

After some FUN tennis on the court, the FOOD afterward was the reward. Thanks to everyone for all “ono” potluck food items, and of course, the champagne that went with it!

The day ended with some new FRIENDSHIPS and bringing back memories of how things used to be when we could get together!

We hope to see more of you there next year for the 2nd Annual Breakfast at Wimbledon!

July 10, 2021 – Summer Orange Ball Tournament

Six up-and-coming junior players, ages 8-11, enter the 1-day event. Most of the players drove in from Hilo, one from Waikoloa, and one flew in from Honolulu. Each participant played three matches – round-robin format followed with a play-off.

In the end, Chelsea Leong (my former student from Honolulu) took the 1st place honors, and Taiki Bando (Hilo) placed 2nd. Chelsea also received the sportsmanship award voted by her peers!

All players received souvenir bag tags and prizes!

June 11-13, 2021 – Kamehameha Day Adult & Junior Tournament 

This tournament was a taste of what competition was like, back in the time before COVID. Everyone was put to the test — playing 3 matches in 3 days. 

The players in bold are Royal Kona Resort Tennis Club members.

In the Women’s 3.5 Singles division, all four women held up nicely and endured the test! In the end, Barbara Springer, one of our club members, took 1st place honors. Other players were – 2nd Crystal Mather, 3rd Emily Humphrey, and 4th Jenny Peterman. 

On the Men’s side, a couple of players had to withdraw due to injury and fatigue. Luckily, the tournament format stayed on course, thanks to some replacement players – Kaipo Parish, Chris Makaiwi, and Marc Wettermann.  

Here were the final standings in the Men’s divisions:

Men’s 4.0 Singles – 1st Andrew Moe, 2nd Nicholas Tran, 3rd Josiah Tanguma, 4th Martin Guelich, 5th Manit Pothong, and 6th Thomas Belcher

• At age 13, Andrew Moe is an up-and-coming 8th grader from Waimea attending HPA.

Men’s 8.5 Combined Doubles – 1st Albert Murata/Lyle Crozier, 2nd Nicholas Tran/Kareem Khozaim, 3rd Andrew Moe/Marvin Kawano, 4th John McCaskill/Bob Borns, 5th Derek Inaba/Errol Llantos, 6th Manit Pothong/Marc Wettermann. 

• Both Lyle (‘ 80) and Albert (‘ 79) were former Konawaena graduates. The last time Albert won a tournament at the Kona Hilton Beach & Tennis Resort (as it was called back then) was in 1978.

May 29-31, 2021 – Memorial Day Junior Tournament

The first USTA sanctioned on-site tournament (adult or junior) in the state of Hawaii since the start of the pandemic! Players, parents, and I had to learn the new digital application, but in the end, everyone was happy to progress into the new normal tournament setting.

A total of 35 participants competed over the 3-day weekend in a non-elimination format! Players arrived from Oahu, Maui, California, Hilo, and Kona. 

It was great to see junior players out on the courts again — something that I’ve missed seeing since working here. As the former Section League Coordinator for the Junior Team Tennis program for 31 years, I enjoyed watching first-hand some of Hawaii’s top juniors develop through the program!

An article was featured in West Hawaii Today.

News & Updates

NEW Website Platform – Court Reserve

The USTA is in the process of converting our current RKRTC website in Serve Tennis to another platform called Court Reserve. The new website will have a different look, and everyone will have to create a Court Reserve account. I’m sure there will be some growing pains, but once we all learn how to use it, the website will be an improvement over the old one! 

Register For the Intraclub Doubles Winter League – January 15 – March 12, 2022

By popular demand, I’m happy to announce that I’ll be running the Intraclub Doubles League throughout 2022! There will be a total of four leagues –  Winter, Spring, Summer, and Fall.

Play up to 7 matches in 8 weeks (one match per week). You’ll get the chance to meet other club members and play some fun, competitive matches! And you’ll play with various partners of similar skill levels.

This tournament is for club members only, so we’ve created a “Join for 1 Month & Get 4 Weeks Free”  introductory offer.

Introductory Offer for Non-Members

Join the club for one month to participate in the upcoming winter league and get 4 weeks free. That means you get to play in the league for the entire 8 weeks and experience all the benefits of membership.

League Details

• To register, contact Albert by email or text (808) 349-3455. 
• Entry fee: $25. Payment – cash, check, or Venmo (@Albert-Murata)
• Deadline – Friday, January 7^th
• Matches will be played on Saturdays, between 8:00-12:00 and 2:00-5:00. If necessary, between 12:00-2:00. 
• The schedule will be posted by Monday prior to each weekly match.
• Each match will consist of any combination of men and women of similar skill levels.
• The match will consist of 3 sets, with partners rotating after each set. 
• Sets will be played with regular scoring and a 7-point tiebreaker played at 5-games all. 
• Scores for all three sets should be reported after the match. 
• Player standings will be based on the highest percentage of games won, with a minimum of 7 matches played.
• The champion and runner-up will receive a prize.

Serve It Forward Fundraiser Tournament – February 19-21, 2022

This is a Fundraiser event for Family Support Hawaii, a nonprofit organization formed by members of the community who are concerned about the life-long consequences of child abuse and neglect.

Due to the COVID pandemic, this tournament was not held during the past two years. RKRTC will be hosting this event in 2022! In its return, the format will be a team doubles event with a round-robin format. Skill levels will include – 2.5, 3.0, 3.5, 4.0, Open. Entries will be limited to 4 teams per division.  More details will be provided later.

Big Island High School Preseason Tournament – January 8-9, 2022

In support of our local high school players, we will be hosting a tournament as one of the primary sites. Kealakehe High School and the Marriott King Kamehameha Kona Beach Hotel will be the other sites.

If you have a child that’s playing on a high school team, or know someone that might be interested, please spread the word! You can check it out here.

Ongoing Round Robins – Tuesdays & Fridays

As most of you know, the round-robin event attracts our local club members and visitors. Many snowbirds who return every year to play tennis here consider it the highlight of their trip.

Here are the revised rules and format for the Round Robin effective Tuesday, November 23.

• 9:00 Session – Limit 20 participants
  • First come first serve
  • Sign-up is from 8:15-8:35am
  • Formal round robin format
  • Participants must be committed to play until the last round (around 11:00)
  • Be prepared to start at 8:45 if there are 16 players ready to start Round 1
  • Late sign-up allowed up until 9:00am
• 7:00 Session – Limit 16 participants
  • First come first serve
  • Informal pickup doubles
  • Participants may sign-up in the 9:00 session if the number of participants is less than 16

September/October, 2021 – RSI Magazine Article

August 13, 2021 – New Court Umbrellas

Now we have shade on every court, depending on the time of day. 

• In the morning, courts 1 and 4 have built-in shade thanks to the retaining wall on the mauka side of each court. Court 2 is the only one without shade. Court 3 has shade from the newly installed umbrellas. 
• In the afternoon, courts 2 and 4 have shade. Court 2 has shade from the umbrella. On court 4, feel free to move the benches to the makai side of the court, then you’ll have shade from the built-in palm trees. Courts 1 and 3 do not have shade. 

The umbrellas will be left open during pro shop hours. If it’s too windy, the umbrella will be left down. 

If you’d like to use the umbrella when the pro shop is closed, please use the crank to open the umbrella. Once the umbrella goes past the hole on the rod, insert the metal pin to secure it. When closing the umbrella, please remember to remove the metal pin before cranking it back down. Mahalo!

Royal Kona Resort Tennis Club Apparel & Accessories

Towels	$20.00
Short-Sleeve Shirts, Tops, Visors & Caps	$25.00
Long-Sleeve Shirts	$30.00

This is actually a golf towel that can be used for tennis (notice the hole and carabiner clip at the top).

2022 USTA Adult League Calendar

• 40 & Over – Season 1/8-3/6
• Mixed 18 & Over – Season 3/12 & 3/19 weekends
• 55 & Over – Season 3/11-5/29
• 18 & Over – Season 6/4 & 6/11 weekends
• Mixed 40 & Over – Season 7/2-8/28
• 65 & Over – Season 9/3-10/2
• Ekolu – Season 9/3-11/6
• Mixed 55 – Season 11/5 & 11/12 weekends

Related Content

• Royal Kona Resort Names USPTA Pro, Albert Murata, New Tennis Director
• Tennis Lessons
• A Hui Hou! AM Stringing Maintains Tennis Services for Oahu Customers — Expands to Big Island as the New Director of Tennis for Royal Kona Resort
• Hawaii Tennis Courts: Mystery Court of the Month

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