Ryuichi Oda ( ja, 小田龍一, born 12 December 1976) is a Japanese

professional golfer A professional golfer is somebody who receives payments or financial rewards in the sport of golf that are directly related to their skill or reputation. A person who earns money by teaching or playing golf is traditionally considered a "golf pr ...

who currently competes on the

Japan Golf Tour 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 th ...

. Oda was born in

Kagoshima Prefecture is a prefecture of Japan located on the island of Kyushu and the Ryukyu Islands. Kagoshima Prefecture has a population of 1,599,779 (1 January 2020) and has a geographic area of 9,187 km2 (3,547 sq mi). Kagoshima Prefecture borders Kumamoto P ...

. He spent much of his amateur career developing his skills at the Kagoshima Country Club. He competed in two Japan Golf Tour events in 2002 ( Token Corporation Cup and

Tsuruya Open The was a professional golf tournament on the Japan Golf Tour. It was played annually from 1994 to 2014 on the Yamanohara Course at Yamanohara Golf Club, formerly Sports Shinko Country Club, near Kawanishi, Hyōgo. The tournament scoring record ...

) and despite missing the cut on both occasions, became a professional in time for the

Fujisankei Classic The is a professional golf tournament on the Japan Golf Tour. It was first played in 1973 at the Takasaka Country Club (Yoneyama Course). The tournament moved to the Higashi-Matsuyama Golf Club in 1979 and to the Kawana Hotel's Fuji course in 1981 ...

where he once again failed to get past the second day. It was not until the

Diamond Cup Tournament The is a professional golf tournament on the Japan Golf Tour. Founded in 1969, the event has been hosted at different courses throughout Japan, including on all four major islands. In 2022, the purse was ¥100,000,000, with ¥20,000,000 going to ...

before he made his first cut, finishing T55. It was not until the 2009 Japan Open that Oda shot to fame. He only just avoided being cut after two rounds and by round three was tied for 5th place. He went on to beat

Ryo Ishikawa , also known by the nickname , is a Japanese professional golfer. Amateur career On 20 May 2007, Ishikawa became the youngest winner ever of a men's regular tournament on the Japan Golf Tour by winning the Munsingwear Open KSB Cup at the age 15 ...

and

Yasuharu Imano Yasuharu Imano ( ja, 今野康晴, born 28 May 1973) is a Japanese professional golfer. Imano was born in Gifu Prefecture. He currently plays on the Japan Golf Tour where he has won seven times between 1999 and 2009. Professional wins (9) Jap ...

in a three-man playoff. Oda would win on the Japan Golf Tour again in 2014, when he took victory at the Mynavi ABC Championship. He would handily by 5 strokes over

Koumei Oda is a Japanese professional golfer. Career Oda was born in Tagawa, Fukuoka. He turned professional in 2000. Oda won the 2008 Casio World Open and the 2009 Token Homemate Cup. He competed in the 2009 Open Championship at Turnberry, but failed t ...

and

Hideto Tanihara is a Japanese professional golfer. He has won 17 tournaments on the Japan Golf Tour. Professional career Tanihara has won 14 tournaments on the Japan Golf Tour and featured in the top 50 of the Official World Golf Ranking. His highest ranking ...

Professional wins (3)

Japan Golf Tour wins (2)

* The

Japan Open Golf Championship The is Japan's national open golf championship. Founded in 1927, it is one of the oldest professional golf tournaments in Japan. The Japan Open is one of the three richest tournaments on the Japan Golf Tour, with a prize fund of ¥210 million in ...

is also a Japan major championship. Japan Golf Tour playoff record (1–0)

Other wins (1)

*2016

Kyusyu Open The Kyusyu Open is a professional golf tournament that is held on Japan's southern island, Kyushu. It was first played in 1971 and was a Japan Golf Tour The Japan Golf Tour ( ja, 日本ゴルフツアー機構) is a prominent golf tour. It was ...

Results in major championships

''Note: Oda only played in The Open Championship.''
CUT = missed the half-way cut

External links

* * Japanese male golfers Japan Golf Tour golfers Sportspeople from Kagoshima Prefecture 1976 births Living people {{Japan-golf-bio-stub