Kids Unlimited’s annual fundraising basketball tournament is again poised to net the most local tourism dollars of any single sporting event.
The 18th annual Southern Oregon Open, planned for Mother’s Day weekend, is expected to produce nearly $1 million in tourism spending. That figure set the 17th annual event apart from athletic counterparts locally, according to the City of Medford’s Rogue X 2025 annual report.
“The impact of the tournament after the final horn has sounded, or the final ball has bounced, has a much greater impact for our community,” said KU Executive Director Tom Cole.
Players in the 17th annual Southern Oregon Open at Rogue X Community Complex in Medford.
With nearly 200 teams registered from across the West Coast, the S.O. Open also hosts nearly 6,000 spectators and participants at Medford’s Rogue X Community Complex, Kids Unlimited and several local schools. Boys and girls in grades 5-12 compete Saturday, May 9, and Sunday, May 10, for titles in their respective divisions.
The S.O. Open is sponsored by Lithia & Driveway, Dutch Bros, Toyota, Medford Parks, Recreation & Facilities, Travel Medford, Rogue Regency Inn and AllCare Health. These sponsorships, in addition to team registration fees, spectator admission, food and apparel sales and other funds raised support KU’s work with Southern Oregon’s most vulnerable children and families.
Adult, all-day spectator passes cost $15 each day of the tournament and can be purchased at any game venue. Kids 10 and younger get in free.
KU will again operate an Asian-inspired mobile food unit at Rogue X, serving teriyaki chicken meals and ice cream courtesy of Oregon Ice Cream Co. Freshly made bubble waffle cones, popularized in Hong Kong, are the flagship product of Uncle Howie’s Bento Boxes and Bubble Waffles.
The tournament was founded in 2007 by Kyle Singler, a South Medford High School alumnus, who went on to lead Duke University to an NCAA national title and played for seven seasons in the NBA. Singler created the tournament with KU’s support as a SMHS senior project.
Basketball has been a key component of KU programming for more than 20 years. Cole created a free Southern Oregon youth basketball league, with help from Medford Rogue Rotary, in response to participants’ interest in learning and playing the game. KU Pass to Play incentivized a generation of kids to complete their homemade and achieve passing grades.
See unlimitedbball.org
