Eleven badminton courts have filled the lofty space inside 1375 Geneva Drive since Bintang Badminton opened in January. In turn, hundreds of the local shuttlecock fanatics have been filling the courts day and night— Bintang Badminton is the first dedicated badminton gym in the Bay Area.

"We don't advertise. It's by word of mouth, and people just flock to us," says Phu Khuu, the facility's owner. "The community reaction to this place is overwhelming."

World-class badminton players practice during evening open gyms, and officials from the city of Sunnyvale have already been by to check out the facility that's vacated their courts at Remington Community Center. Such popularity delights Khuu, an avid badminton player himself, but that wasn't the reasoning behind the gymnasium's opening.

"I have a place to play whenever I want," he says with a grin.

The recent Santa Clara University law school graduate founded Bintang Badminton as the host of his nonprofit organization, which shares the same name. Khuu coaches children from the age of 6 through their years on varsity high school teams and strives to encourage youth participation by covering equipment costs and tournament fees.

"The economy is pretty bad, and parents aren't always supportive," he says. "So, we have no markups in the pro shop, and we'll sponsor them for tournaments. They just have to love the sport."

Khuu, who has coached for teams such as Saratoga High School's, began working with youngsters several years ago in Campbell but moved to Mountain View to rent a more stable facility. While there, Khuu opened his courts to the public solely to cover the cost of rent. "I'm really running it as a hobby instead of as a business," he says.

While the Mountain View facility was quite a boon for local players, the ceilings weren't high enough for dedicated play. Khuu consulted with his landlord, who referred him to the Geneva Drive building. "He believed in us, and he convinced this landlord to believe in us," he says.

After paying to install bathrooms and put up a wall to split the warehouse in two— and stretching his credit in the process— Khuu moved in with a little help from his friends and patrons. "A group of my students got together to paint the walls, and my aunts and uncles sanded and puttied the floors," he says. "We built this place on good faith."

Since January, Khuu has maintained his teaching schedule— college students in the mornings, younger children on weekend mornings— but has seen the numbers of local players coming through his door skyrocket.

As evidenced by the mix in Khuu's gym, badminton is growing in popularity in the United States, especially among Asians and Indians. Khuu attributes that to badminton's popularity in southeast Asia in its early days. The game spread to England and the rest of Europe via colonization.

"Badminton is not a spectator sport. It doesn't bring in a lot of money," Khuu says. "Because of that, it's not that big of a sport in America, but maybe I can help with that." The Los Angeles area has two dedicated badminton gyms, and with the first in this area, Khuu is confident that interest will grow among newcomers. Seventy percent of his students are female, who historically have not played badminton in large numbers.

Stella Chun is just one of the gym's fans. Khuu was her coach in high school, and now that she's out of college and working nearby, she plays at the gym 10 to 12 hours a week. "The gym is like heaven to us," she says. "[Khuu] will always help people find partners and often plays down with the recreational players, something not very many high-level players will do."

She also says that Khuu has worked hard to promote a sport that's often seen as "wimpy" in the U.S. "[Badminton] requires the strength, power and endurance of the popular American sports, but it also requires control, finesse and grace. I play badminton to challenge myself, both physically and mentally," she says.

Khuu says the speed and versatility of badminton is what appeals to him. "It's a different game every time because there are so many variables," he says. "So many people of different ages and abilities can play it."

He learned how to play badminton as an eighth-grader in Fremont in a neighbor's backyard— and beat everyone else. After making the team at Mission San Jose High School his freshman year, he trained during a summer in Indonesia. A torn Achilles tendon ended his competitive career, but the experience in Indonesia made an impression.

While there, he ran six miles up a mountain every day as part of his training, and to survive the excruciating workout, he would sing "Twinkle Twinkle Little Star" in his head— in Indonesian. Bintang is the equivalent word for "star," which provided the inspiration for the name of his gym. "For me, it's a symbol of hard work," Khuu says.

He's currently taking a break from another type of hard work— he's awaiting the results of the bar exam he took in February. He spends much of his day at Bintang Badminton, starting at 6 a.m. and locking up after open gym ends at 11 p.m. "This is basically my home," he says. He's still dipping into his savings and takes advantage of his mother's free secretarial services, but hopes that once his lease on the Mountain View facility runs out in September, finances will stabilize.

For now, Khuu enjoys his role as teacher and hopes for a position with a practice that will allow him to put more money into the gym. His tournament team continues to train for another national run, but he says he'll help anyone who walks through the door. "The mothers of two of my students came in the other day and asked me for a lesson. They said they would pay me, but I just told them to get better in six months, and that would be my payment," he says. "Things like that just turn your heart upside down."