The Japan Golf Tour ( ja, 日本ゴルフツアー機構) 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
Jonathan Michael Majors (born September 7, 1989)Majors in is an American actor. He rose to prominence after starring in the independent feature film ''The Last Black Man in San Francisco'' (2019). In 2020, he garnered wider notice for portraying ...
.
Most of the leading players on the tour are
Japan
Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...
ese, 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
The Japan Challenge Tour (currently known as the AbemaTV Tour for sponsorships reasons), is a series of developmental golf tournaments run by the Japan Golf Tour Organization. It has been in operation since 1985. The 2018 schedule featured 12 tourn ...
.
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.
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 will earn status to play on the European Tour for the following season.
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.
Multiple money list titles
The following players have won more than one money list title through 2021:
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.
There is a full list on the Japan Golf Tour's websit
here
Records
*Youngest winner:
Ryo Ishikawa (amateur) 15 years, 238 days (
Munsingwear Open KSB Cup, 2007)
See also
*
Japan Golf Association The , also known as the JGA, is Japanese national association of golf courses, clubs and facilities and the governing body of golf for Japan.
Competitions organized by JGA
*Japan Open Golf Championship
*Japan Women's Open Golf Championship
* Japan ...
*
List of golfers with most Japan Golf Tour wins
This is a list of golfers who have won 10 or more events on the Japan Golf Tour since it was established in 1973. The official Japan Golf Tour website lists winners beginning with the 1985 season. Individual player pages, however, list the total nu ...
Notes
References
External links
*
{{Men's Professional Golf Tours
Professional golf tours
1973 establishments in Japan
Organizations established in 1973