SOLANA BEACH — Part homecoming, part comeback, Katherine Hui, 21, is spending the next two weeks competing professionally on the same San Diego tennis courts where she first learned the game.
The San Diego native, Santa Fe Christian alum and 2023 U.S. Open junior girls’ singles champion is playing in the SoCal Pro Series, returning to familiar surroundings after a wrist injury and subsequent surgery disrupted the past two years of her career.
The fifth-annual SoCal Pro Series, hosted by USTA Southern California, concludes with tournaments at Barnes Tennis Center in San Diego from June 29-July 5 and Rancho Santa Fe Tennis Club from July 6-12.
The series serves as a developmental pathway for aspiring professionals, college standouts and top junior players seeking ATP and WTA ranking points.
For Hui, Barnes Tennis Center is more than another tournament stop.
“I feel like it’s come full circle,” Hui said. “Especially this week at Barnes. I used to play under-8 and under-10 tournaments there when I was 7 or 8 years old, and then being able to play a professional tournament there, it’s really cool.”
“I feel like I have a little bit of a home-court advantage,” she added.
Some of her favorite memories from Barnes have little to do with tennis.
“I remember me and my friend were splitting a peanut butter and jelly sandwich while watching a match,” Hui said. “I don’t know why I still remember that, but it was really fun.”
Those childhood tournaments helped launch one of San Diego’s top junior players. Hui rose as high as No. 1 in the nation in the Tennis Recruiting rankings before winning the 2023 U.S. Open junior girls’ singles title and beginning her collegiate career at Stanford.
Now competing as a professional, Hui entered the week ranked No. 1,491 in WTA singles and No. 1,076 in the ITF. Before injuries, she climbed as high as No. 855 in the WTA rankings and No. 348 in the ITF standings.
Not every lesson came through winning.
“Growing up playing some junior tournaments, especially when I was younger, I had some tough losses,” Hui said. “I think that definitely helped me build my character and resilience. Focusing on my development over wins and losses was the key to my success.
“A lot of the time, you have so much pressure to win. I think focusing on my game and how I wanted to improve and what I wanted to play like helped create the player I am today.”
Then came the injury.
After experiencing wrist pain in 2023, Hui continued competing through her freshman season at Stanford. The injury worsened over time, eventually resulting in tears to her ECU tendon and TFCC that required surgery in February 2025.
“I started feeling some wrist issues in 2023,” Hui said. “I played through the season through 2024 and it kind of made it a lot worse.”
Recovery wasn’t easy.
“It was a bigger surgery than I had experienced before, so it was a little scary,” Hui said.
At one point, the injury forced her to relearn the basics.
“It was pretty invasive, so I really had to relearn how to grip things and use my hand,” Hui said. “I had a long time off tennis.”
She estimated she went roughly a year without hitting a backhand while recovering.
Being away from tennis also changed her perspective.
While many elite junior tennis players choose homeschooling to accommodate demanding training and travel schedules, Hui remained in a traditional school environment at Santa Fe Christian, where she graduated as valedictorian.
“I really loved school,” Hui said. “A lot of players go the homeschool route.”
She said her parents, Yimei and Yan, emphasized the importance of education despite the demands of elite-level tennis.
“A couple times I really had asked to be homeschooled,” Hui said. “But my parents really value education and wanted me to have a high school experience. Looking back, I’m really grateful that they had me stay in school.”
“After losing a tournament, I kind of think it’s the end of the world,” Hui added. “Then I’d go back to school and nobody really cares and we’re just going about our day.”
That perspective helped during her recovery at Stanford.
“I definitely grew as a person,” Hui said. “I really formed closer friendships with some of my friends at school.”
The injury also gave her a chance to work on weaker parts of her game.
“My forehand was definitely a weakness before I had my injury,” Hui said. “Now I almost feel like I like it better than my backhand.”
She also spent time improving her serve and slice.
“I think there’s almost a silver lining,” Hui said. “Without the injury, I don’t think I would have gotten to where I am today in other parts of my game.”
Now healthy and back on court, Hui enters the SoCal Pro Series focused less on results and more on enjoying the chance to compete again.
“This is maybe my sixth tournament back,” Hui said. “I’m not expecting too much.”
“I mainly want to go out there and enjoy competing again,” Hui added. “Just to be loose and be happy out on court.”
Hui is scheduled to open singles play Wednesday against fellow San Diegan and Torrey Pines High School graduate Alyssa Ahn. She is also slated to compete in doubles alongside Jayna Clemens against the tournament’s top-seeded pairing of Anne Christine Lutkemeyer Obregon and Anita Sahdiieva.
“At the end of the day, I’m really grateful to be playing,” Hui said. “A year ago I was in a cast. I couldn’t do anything and I wasn’t sure if I could even return to playing at the same level I was playing before.”
