[1] Hawkes had a sporting background, with his father a New Zealand Universities rugby representative and his mother an all-round sportsperson from Taranaki.

In 1968 he represented the New Zealand Davis Cup team in a 1968 tie against Yugoslavia in Zagreb, partnering Brian Fairlie in the doubles rubber.

He scored an upset win over former American Davis Cup captain Donald Dell at the 1970 New Zealand Open.

[3] A graduate of Victoria University of Wellington, Hawkes was admitted as a New Zealand barrister in 1968 and relocated to Hong Kong during the late 1970s.

[4] Hawkes married squash player Julie Lamb and they raised their four children in Hong Kong (three daughters and one son).