“In March 2012, SSUSA visited the Big Island and that was the germ that sparked the idea for a Senior Tournament,” said Kerry Crosson, the founder of the tournament.

“Initially we had a 70’s and 60’s division. We chose mid-January because it was a shoulder between the Holidays and the Snow Birds.  After two years it was decided to only have one division of 60 and older,” said Crosson.

“The tournament was generating hundreds of thousands of dollars for Kona in commerce.  Also, we felt that this was a great way to kickoff the tournament season with no competition.”

“In 2016 the tournament was expanded to include women.  This was by far the biggest growth segment, expanding from 6 to 8 to 10 teams.”

As of the 2020 tournament, we are now at 18 entries, 12 men’s teams and six women’s teams.