Eru Lyndon won the Northland under-10 tennis championship when he was a youngster.
Now aged 32, he is again serving for Northland as regional commissioner for social development - the youngest regional leader the Ministry of Social Development (MSD) has in the country.
And the stakes are much higher than the Moro bar and $2 he collected when winning his first tennis title.
MSD Northland has 174 staff in eight offices spending millions of dollars annually providing services for individuals, families, senior citizens, young people, students and disabled people around the region.
Mr Lyndon said he took on the role of commissioner because he was passionate about Northland.