Kooyong Tennis Club has lost its chief executive after just 17 months, with Ian Robson to finish up this week after handing in his resignation. Kooyong president Steve Wood told members on Thursday afternoon that Robson had informed the board he was stepping down from Kooyong Lawn Tennis Club.

Wood said Robson had helped guide the club through a period of operational strengthening, member-focused service improvements and renewed stability across the club. He said the board had asked him to step in to assist the management team while a formal search for Kooyong’s next chief executive gets under way.

Robson arrived at Kooyong in January 2025, bringing a long background in sports administration that included senior roles at Rowing Australia, the Melbourne Victory soccer club, Essendon Football Club and Hawthorn Football Club. His departure leaves one of Australia’s most prestigious tennis clubs looking for fresh leadership at a time when it is still carrying the memory of a damaging financial review.

That scrutiny came in 2023, when Kooyong was examined over millions of dollars in losses from its dining operations. Independent auditors found poor financial management and reporting were to blame for the substantial losses from the club’s dining arm, a blow that sharpened attention on the way the organisation was being run. Robson’s arrival was meant to help steady that picture, and Wood’s farewell note pointed to a club that had been more stable under his watch.

“I wish to advise that Chief Executive Officer Ian Robson has informed the Board of his resignation from Kooyong Lawn Tennis Club,” Wood wrote to members. He added that Robson would be finishing up this week, thanking him for the professionalism he brought to the role and saying his contribution had helped lay strong foundations for the club’s future, including a move to an in-house model for key member services and a stronger management team.

The tension for Kooyong now is not whether Robson made an impact, but whether the club can hold on to the gains he leaves behind. A formal search for the next chief executive is beginning immediately, and the board has already moved to keep the management team supported in the meantime. For a club that has spent years trying to restore confidence after the 2023 losses, the next appointment will shape whether the stability Wood described becomes lasting progress or just another short chapter in the age of repair.