Hawaii is leaning on big sporting events to pull in higher-spending visitors, good news for hotels, restaurants, and the state's tourism economy.

• Back-to-back events — a women's golf championship on Oahu and a Warriors-Clippers NBA game — are putting the islands in front of a national audience.
• Sports visitors are seen as the second most valuable type after convention travelers, since they spend more and stay longer.
• The state is shifting toward events people come to play in, not just watch, like the Honolulu Marathon and the Honolulu Century Ride.
• Japan remains the key market, with 10,000 to 12,000 marathon runners expected from there alone.
• About $6 million of the tourism authority's budget is going to sports tourism, with a girls flag football tournament tied to six NFL franchises and a possible volleyball event before the 2028 Olympics in the works.

Outlook: Expect Hawaii to keep adding participant-driven events aimed at West Coast and Japanese travelers, with the payoff measured in visitor spending rather than crowd size.