Japan Golf Tour

The Japan Golf Tour is a prominent golf tour. It was founded in 1973 and as of 2006 it offers 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 World Golf Ranking points, and success on the tour can also qualify members to play in the majors.

Japan Golf Tour
Current season, competition or edition:
2020–21 Japan Golf Tour
SportGolf
Founded1973
DirectorIsao Aoki
Country Japan
Most titlesMoney list titles:
12 – Masashi Ozaki
Tournament wins:
94 – Masashi Ozaki
Related
competitions		Japan Challenge Tour
Official websiteJGTO.org

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.[1] The JGTO also organises a developmental tour called the Japan Challenge Tour.

Masashi "Jumbo" 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.

Money list winners

The official prize money list on the Japan Golf Tour includes money won by members in the majors and the World Golf Championships events. Through 2009, all of the players who have topped the money list were Japanese nationals, except for the Japanese American David Ishii, but Korean Kim Kyung-tae became the first golfer with non-Japanese origin to top the money list in 2010.

YearPlayerCountryPrize money (¥)
2019Shugo Imahira (2/2) Japan168,049,312
2018Shugo Imahira (1/2) Japan139,119,332
2017Yūsaku Miyazato Japan182,831,982
2016Yuta Ikeda Japan207,901,567
2015Kim Kyung-tae (2/2) South Korea165,981,625
2014Koumei Oda Japan137,318,693
2013Hideki Matsuyama Japan201,076,781
2012Hiroyuki Fujita Japan175,159,972
2011Bae Sang-moon South Korea151,078,958
2010Kim Kyung-tae (1/2) South Korea181,103,799
2009Ryo Ishikawa Japan183,524,051
2008Shingo Katayama (5/5) Japan180,094,895
2007Toru Taniguchi (2/2) Japan171,744,498
2006Shingo Katayama (4/5) Japan178,402,190
2005Shingo Katayama (3/5) Japan134,075,280
2004Shingo Katayama (2/5) Japan119,512,374
2003Toshimitsu Izawa (2/2) Japan135,454,300
2002Toru Taniguchi (1/2) Japan145,440,341
2001Toshimitsu Izawa (1/2) Japan217,934,583
2000Shingo Katayama (1/5) Japan177,116,489
1999Naomichi "Joe" Ozaki (2/2) Japan137,641,796
1998Masashi "Jumbo" Ozaki (12/12) Japan179,627,400
1997Masashi "Jumbo" Ozaki (11/12) Japan170,847,633
1996Masashi "Jumbo" Ozaki (10/12) Japan209,646,746
1995Masashi "Jumbo" Ozaki (9/12) Japan192,319,800
1994Masashi "Jumbo" Ozaki (8/12) Japan215,468,000
1993Hajime Meshiai Japan148,718,200
1992Masashi "Jumbo" Ozaki (7/12) Japan186,816,466
1991Naomichi "Joe" Ozaki (1/2) Japan119,507,974
1990Masashi "Jumbo" Ozaki (6/12) Japan129,060,500
1989Masashi "Jumbo" Ozaki (5/12) Japan108,715,733
1988Masashi "Jumbo" Ozaki (4/12) Japan125,162,540
1987David Ishii United States86,554,421
1986Tsuneyuki "Tommy" Nakajima (4/4) Japan90,202,066
1985Tsuneyuki "Tommy" Nakajima (3/4) Japan101,609,333
1984Shinsaku Maeda Japan57,040,357
1983Tsuneyuki "Tommy" Nakajima (2/4) Japan85,514,183
1982Tsuneyuki "Tommy" Nakajima (1/4) Japan68,220,640
1981Isao Aoki (5/5) Japan57,262,941
1980Isao Aoki (4/5) Japan60,532,660
1979Isao Aoki (3/5) Japan45,554,211
1978Isao Aoki (2/5) Japan62,987,200
1977Masashi "Jumbo" Ozaki (3/12) Japan35,932,608
1976Isao Aoki (1/5) Japan40,985,801
1975Takashi Murakami Japan38,705,551
1974Masashi "Jumbo" Ozaki (2/12) Japan41,846,908
1973Masashi "Jumbo" Ozaki (1/12) Japan43,814,000

Multiple money list titles

The following players have won more than one money list title through 2020:

TitlesPlayerCountry
12Masashi "Jumbo" Ozaki Japan
5Isao Aoki Japan
5Shingo Katayama Japan
4Tsuneyuki "Tommy" Nakajima Japan
2Toshimitsu Izawa Japan
2Naomichi "Joe" Ozaki Japan
2Toru Taniguchi Japan
2Kim Kyung-tae South Korea
2Shugo Imahira Japan

Career money leaders

The table shows the top ten career money leaders on the Japan Golf Tour through the 2019 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.

PositionPlayerCountryPrize money (¥)
1Masashi "Jumbo" Ozaki Japan2,688,836,653
2Shingo Katayama Japan2,219,787,405
3Tsuneyuki "Tommy" Nakajima Japan1,664,953,541
4Toru Taniguchi Japan1,655,033,756
5Naomichi "Joe" Ozaki Japan1,545,609,713
6Hiroyuki Fujita Japan1,522,057,750
7Yuta Ikeda Japan1,207,748,995
8Katsumasa Miyamoto Japan1,140,211,825
9Brendan Jones Australia1,094,192,410
10Hideto Tanihara Japan1,080,542,691

There is a full list on the Japan Golf Tour's website here.

Records

See also

Notes and references
  1. "Japan golf touring pros on own". The Honolulu Advertiser. Honolulu, Hawaii. 27 January 1999 – via Newspapers.com.
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