Japan announces Rusutsu Pickleball Open 2026 at Hokkaido courts
Rusutsu’s eight dedicated courts give Hokkaido its first true pickleball base, with a June 28 debut built around coaching, youth play and resort tourism.
Rusutsu Resort has turned Hokkaido’s first dedicated pickleball courts into the clearest sign yet that Japan’s pickleball growth is pushing beyond Tokyo and into destination markets. The resort will host the RUSUTSU Pickleball Open 2026 on Sunday, June 28, from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., using eight full-scale courts built last year and a venue that also includes spectator seating.
The launch matters because it lands as Pickleball Japan, the unified national body formed when the Japan Pickleball Association and Pickleball Japan Federation merged on April 14, 2026, is still putting structure around the sport’s next phase. PJ says its footprint now includes more than 3,200 members, 53 partner organizations and five official courts listed on its site, but Rusutsu’s eight-court complex shows where the sport is headed next: permanent facilities, regional access and a tourism-backed setting built to handle both play and spectators.
The tournament is aimed at beginner and intermediate players, with men’s doubles, women’s doubles, mixed doubles and men’s singles on the schedule. Play will run in a round robin format before single elimination, giving the debut a format that is competitive without shutting out newer players. Rusutsu Resort is hosting the event with support from the Pickleball Japan Federation, and the setup reflects a broader strategy to use the resort as an entry point into the sport rather than just another stop on the calendar.
The weekend will begin the day before the tournament with a PJ Ambassador Certification Course and a Step Up Lesson led by PJ-certified pro Joe Kasahara. It will also feature a Soccer and Pickleball Experience with former Japan national soccer player Tsuyoshi Kitazawa for children, listed as ages 4 to 12 in the English announcement and grades 3 to 6 in the Japanese notice. A Night Pickleball Event will round out the build-up, using illuminated paddles and balls under black lights.
That combination of certification, youth programming, competitive play and resort entertainment is what makes the Rusutsu debut more than a simple event launch. Rusutsu already operates as a major Hokkaido highland destination with an amusement park and more than 60 attractions, and pickleball now joins that infrastructure as another reason to stay, travel and return. In practical terms, Hokkaido has gone from having no dedicated pickleball base to hosting a purpose-built venue with eight courts and a national tournament weekend attached.
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