Hooman was born at Ditton, Kent in 1887, the only son of Thomas and Louisa Hooman. His father had been a shipbroker and manufacturer of Portland cement and had played football for Wanderers, appearing in the 1872 FA Cup Final, and England. The family moved to Torquay and he was educated at Charterhouse School from 1901 where he played in the Cricket XI from 1903 to 1906, captaining the side in his final year, and won the Rackets Pairs competition at the Public Schools Championships in 1906.