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Japan Golf Tour
Professional golf tour
Professional golf tour
| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| title | Japan Golf Tour |
| current_season | 2025 Japan Golf Tour |
| pixels | 150px |
| Formerly | iiyama Tour |
| PGA of Japan Tour | |
| sport | Golf |
| founded | 1973 |
| inaugural | 1973 |
| countries | Based in Japan |
| most_champs | Money list titles: |
| JPN Masashi Ozaki (12) | |
| Tournament wins: | |
| JPN Masashi Ozaki (94) | |
| website | https://www.jgto.org/en |
| director | Isao Aoki |
| related_comps | Japan Challenge Tour |
| Founder | PGA of Japan |
PGA of Japan Tour JPN Masashi Ozaki (12) Tournament wins: JPN Masashi Ozaki (94) The Japan Golf Tour () is a prominent professional golf tour. It was founded in 1973 and as of 2006, it offered the third-highest annual prize fund out of the regular (that is not for seniors) men's professional tours after the PGA Tour and the European Tour. However, since the early 1990s, the growth in prize money has not kept pace with that on the two larger tours. Official events on the Japan Golf Tour count for Official World Golf Ranking points and success on the tour can also qualify members to play in the majors.
Background
Most of the leading players on the tour are Japanese, but players from many other countries also participate. The tour is currently run by the Japan Golf Tour Organization (JGTO), which was established in 1999 to separate the tour from the PGA of Japan. The JGTO also organises a developmental tour called the Japan Challenge Tour.
Masashi Ozaki has been the dominant player on tour, leading the career wins list with 94, the career money list with over ¥2 billion and winning the money title twelve times between 1973 and 1998.
Entry to The Open Championship is given to Order of Merit winner and runner-up, Japan Open Golf Championship winner, two players not already exempt from the money list up to the Japan Golf Tour Championship and the top four non-exempt players from the Mizuno Open.
In 2000, the tour signed a title sponsorship agreement with Iiyama, being renamed as the iiyama Tour. The agreement was reported to be worth over three years.
In 2008, the tour ventured outside of Japan for the first time, co-sanctioning the Pine Valley Beijing Open in China, alongside the Asian Tour. In 2013, the tour also co-sanctioned two events at the beginning of the year in Thailand and Indonesia with the OneAsia Tour.
In December 2022, a new agreement involving the JGTO, PGA Tour and European Tour was announced. As part of the deal, from 2023 onwards the top three on the Japan Golf Tour's season-ending money list earned status to play on the European Tour for the following season.
Money list winners
| Season | Winner | Prize money (¥) |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | JPN Kota Kaneko | 120,231,009 |
| 2024 | JPN Takumi Kanaya | 119,551,222 |
| 2023 | JPN Keita Nakajima | 184,986,179 |
| 2022 | JPN Kazuki Higa | 181,598,825 |
| 2020–21 | USA Chan Kim | 127,599,803 |
| 2019 | JPN Shugo Imahira (2) | 168,049,312 |
| 2018 | JPN Shugo Imahira | 139,119,332 |
| 2017 | JPN Yūsaku Miyazato | 182,831,982 |
| 2016 | JPN Yuta Ikeda | 207,901,567 |
| 2015 | KOR Kim Kyung-tae (2) | 165,981,625 |
| 2014 | JPN Koumei Oda | 137,318,693 |
| 2013 | JPN Hideki Matsuyama | 201,076,781 |
| 2012 | JPN Hiroyuki Fujita | 175,159,972 |
| 2011 | KOR Bae Sang-moon | 151,078,958 |
| 2010 | KOR Kim Kyung-tae | 181,103,799 |
| 2009 | JPN Ryo Ishikawa | 183,524,051 |
| 2008 | JPN Shingo Katayama (5) | 180,094,895 |
| 2007 | JPN Toru Taniguchi (2) | 171,744,498 |
| 2006 | JPN Shingo Katayama (4) | 178,402,190 |
| 2005 | JPN Shingo Katayama (3) | 134,075,280 |
| 2004 | JPN Shingo Katayama (2) | 119,512,374 |
| 2003 | JPN Toshimitsu Izawa (2) | 135,454,300 |
| 2002 | JPN Toru Taniguchi | 145,440,341 |
| 2001 | JPN Toshimitsu Izawa | 217,934,583 |
| 2000 | JPN Shingo Katayama | 177,116,489 |
| 1999 | JPN Naomichi Ozaki (2) | 137,641,796 |
| 1998 | JPN Masashi Ozaki (12) | 179,627,400 |
| 1997 | JPN Masashi Ozaki (11) | 170,847,633 |
| 1996 | JPN Masashi Ozaki (10) | 209,646,746 |
| 1995 | JPN Masashi Ozaki (9) | 192,319,800 |
| 1994 | JPN Masashi Ozaki (8) | 215,468,000 |
| 1993 | JPN Hajime Meshiai | 148,718,200 |
| 1992 | JPN Masashi Ozaki (7) | 186,816,466 |
| 1991 | JPN Naomichi Ozaki | 119,507,974 |
| 1990 | JPN Masashi Ozaki (6) | 129,060,500 |
| 1989 | JPN Masashi Ozaki (5) | 108,715,733 |
| 1988 | JPN Masashi Ozaki (4) | 125,162,540 |
| 1987 | USA David Ishii | 86,554,421 |
| 1986 | JPN Tsuneyuki Nakajima (4) | 90,202,066 |
| 1985 | JPN Tsuneyuki Nakajima (3) | 101,609,333 |
| 1984 | JPN Shinsaku Maeda | 57,040,357 |
| 1983 | JPN Tsuneyuki Nakajima (2) | 85,514,183 |
| 1982 | JPN Tsuneyuki Nakajima | 68,220,640 |
| 1981 | JPN Isao Aoki (5) | 57,262,941 |
| 1980 | JPN Isao Aoki (4) | 60,532,660 |
| 1979 | JPN Isao Aoki (3) | 45,554,211 |
| 1978 | JPN Isao Aoki (2) | 62,987,200 |
| 1977 | JPN Masashi Ozaki (3) | 35,932,608 |
| 1976 | JPN Isao Aoki | 40,985,801 |
| 1975 | JPN Takashi Murakami | 38,705,551 |
| 1974 | JPN Masashi Ozaki (2) | 41,846,908 |
| 1973 | JPN Masashi Ozaki | 43,814,000 |
Multiple winners
| Rank | Player | Wins | Years won |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | JPN Masashi Ozaki | 12 | 1973, 1974, 1977, 1988, 1989, 1990, 1992, 1994, 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998 |
| T2 | JPN Isao Aoki | 5 | 1976, 1978, 1979, 1980, 1981 |
| JPN Shingo Katayama | 2000, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2008 | ||
| 4 | JPN Tsuneyuki Nakajima | 4 | 1982, 1983, 1985, 1986 |
| T5 | JPN Shugo Imahira | 2 | 2018, 2019 |
| JPN Toshimitsu Izawa | 2001, 2003 | ||
| KOR Kim Kyung-tae | 2010, 2015 | ||
| JPN Naomichi Ozaki | 1991, 1999 | ||
| JPN Toru Taniguchi | 2002, 2007 |
Awards
| Season | Most Valuable Player | Rookie of the Year |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | JPN Kota Kaneko | JPN Yuta Sugiura |
| 2024 | JPN Takumi Kanaya | JPN Kensei Hirata |
| 2023 | JPN Keita Nakajima | JPN Keita Nakajima |
| 2022 | JPN Kazuki Higa | JPN Yuto Katsuragawa |
| 2020–21 | USA Chan Kim | JPN Takumi Kanaya |
| 2019 | JPN Shugo Imahira (2) | THA Jazz Janewattananond |
| 2018 | JPN Shugo Imahira | JPN Rikuya Hoshino |
| 2017 | JPN Yūsaku Miyazato | USA Chan Kim |
| 2016 | JPN Yuta Ikeda | ZAF Shaun Norris |
| 2015 | KOR Kim Kyung-tae | KOR Song Young-han |
| 2014 | JPN Koumei Oda | KOR Kim Seung-hyuk |
| 2013 | JPN Hideki Matsuyama | JPN Hideki Matsuyama |
| 2012 | JPN Hiroyuki Fujita (2) | JPN Yoshinori Fujimoto |
| 2011 | KOR Bae Sang-moon | KOR Park Jae-bum |
| 2010 | JPN Hiroyuki Fujita | JPN Shunsuke Sonoda |
| 2009 | JPN Ryo Ishikawa | JPN Yuta Ikeda |
| 2008 | JPN Shingo Katayama (4) | JPN Ryo Ishikawa |
| 2007 | JPN Toru Taniguchi (3) | KOR Lee Seong-ho |
| 2006 | JPN Shingo Katayama (3) | KOR Lee Dong-hwan |
| 2005 | JPN Shingo Katayama (2) | KOR Jang Ik-jae |
| 2004 | JPN Toru Taniguchi (2) | JPN Takuya Taniguchi |
| 2003 | JPN Toshimitsu Izawa (2) | JPN Hideto Tanihara |
| 2002 | JPN Toru Taniguchi | AUS Brendan Jones |
| 2001 | JPN Toshimitsu Izawa | AUS Scott Laycock |
| 2000 | JPN Shingo Katayama | USA Dean Wilson |
Career money leaders
The table shows the top ten career money leaders on the Japan Golf Tour through the 2021 season. The figures shown include money won in the four global major championships from 1998 onwards and in the individual World Golf Championships from 1999 to 2009.
| Position | Player | Prize money (¥) |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | JPN Masashi Ozaki | 2,688,836,653 |
| 2 | JPN Shingo Katayama | 2,252,278,502 |
| 3 | JPN Tsuneyuki Nakajima | 1,664,953,541 |
| 4 | JPN Toru Taniguchi | 1,662,207,219 |
| 5 | JPN Naomichi Ozaki | 1,545,609,713 |
| 6 | JPN Hiroyuki Fujita | 1,533,257,797 |
| 7 | JPN Yuta Ikeda | 1,269,641,069 |
| 8 | JPN Hideto Tanihara | 1,192,142,233 |
| 9 | JPN Katsumasa Miyamoto | 1,166,981,591 |
| 10 | AUS Brendan Jones | 1,094,192,410 |
Japan Golf Tour's website has a full list here.
Records
- Youngest winner: Ryo Ishikawa (amateur) 15 years, 238 days (Munsingwear Open KSB Cup, 2007)
Notes
References
References
- (27 January 1999). "Japan golf touring pros on own". The Honolulu Advertiser.
- Zak, Sean. (8 December 2016). "Before Hideki Matsuyama, There Was Jumbo Ozaki".
- (11 May 2002). "年間スポンサーのイーヤマ撤退を正式発表".
- (23 April 2008). "Aoki tipped to play at Pine Valley Beijing Open".
- (13 December 2012). "Japan Tour expands OneAsia link". The Sporting News.
- Thongsombat, Kittipong. (13 December 2012). "Japanese addition for Thai Open". Bangkok Post.
- Beall, Joel. (5 December 2022). "PGA Tour and DP World Tour announce alliance with Japan Golf Tour".
- Yamanishi, Hideki. (3 December 2024). "「3位以内は欧州ツアー出場権獲得」じゃないの!? 昨季のMR2位と3位が欧州ツアーに1試合しか出ていない理由とは？".
- (21 May 2007). "15-year-old boy captures pro tournament in Japan". Toronto Star.
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