2022_Japan_Challenge_Tour
2022 Japan Golf Tour
Golf tour season
The 2022 Japan Golf Tour was the 49th season of the Japan Golf Tour (formerly the PGA of Japan Tour), the main professional golf tour in Japan since it was formed in 1973.
| Duration | 31 March 2022 (2022-03-31) – 4 December 2022 (2022-12-04) |
|---|---|
| Number of official events | 24 |
| Most wins |  Kazuki Higa (4) |
| Money list | Kazuki Higa |
| Most Valuable Player | Kazuki Higa |
| Rookie of the Year | Yuto Katsuragawa |
← 2020–21 2023 → | |
Following a statement produced by the Japan Golf Tour Organization on 1 October 2022, they outlined their position in regards to the ongoing dispute between LIV Golf and the PGA Tour and their alliance; the European Tour (DP World Tour). They stated that it would be beneficial to the Japan Golf Tour that they remained in a neutral position. However, they also came to the conclusion that they could potentially be better off siding with the PGA Tour, giving players in Asia a pathway to playing opportunities in the United States, as the Asian Tour has already struck an amicable relationship with LIV Golf, giving their players playing opportunities in the LIV Golf League via the International Series.[1][2]
In December, a new agreement with the 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.[3]
The following table lists official events during the 2022 season.[4]
| Date | Tournament | Location | Purse (¥) | Winner[lower-alpha 1] | OWGR points | Other tours[lower-alpha 2] | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3 Apr | Token Homemate Cup | Mie | 130,000,000 | Jinichiro Kozuma (2) | 16 | ||
| 17 Apr | Kansai Open Golf Championship | Hyōgo | 80,000,000 | Kazuki Higa (3) | 16 | ||
| 24 Apr | ISPS Handa Championship in Japan | Ibaraki | 100,000,000 | Yuto Katsuragawa (1) | 16 | New tournament | |
| 1 May | The Crowns | Aichi | 100,000,000 | Yuki Inamori (3) | 16 | ||
| 15 May | Asia Pacific Open Golf Championship Diamond Cup | Ibaraki | 100,000,000 | Shugo Imahira (6) | 15 | ASA | |
| 22 May | Golf Partner Pro-Am Tournament | Ibaraki | 50,000,000 | Shugo Imahira (7) | 16 | Pro-Am | |
| 29 May | Gateway to The Open Mizuno Open | Okayama | 80,000,000 |  Scott Vincent (3) | 16 | ||
| 5 Jun | BMW Japan Golf Tour Championship Mori Building Cup | Ibaraki | 150,000,000 | Kazuki Higa (4) | 16 | Japan major | |
| 12 Jun | ASO Iizuka Challenged Golf Tournament | Fukuoka | 100,000,000 | Tomoyo Ikemura (2) | 16 | New tournament | |
| 26 Jun | Japan Players Championship | Tochigi | 50,000,000 | Yuki Inamori (4) | 16 | ||
| 7 Aug | Japan PGA Championship | Shizuoka | 150,000,000 | Mikumu Horikawa (3) | 16 | Japan major | |
| 21 Aug | Shigeo Nagashima Invitational Sega Sammy Cup | Hokkaidō | 120,000,000 | Hiroshi Iwata (4) | 7.62 | ||
| 28 Aug | Sansan KBC Augusta | Fukuoka | 100,000,000 | Riki Kawamoto (1) | 8.08 | ||
| 4 Sep | Fujisankei Classic | Yamanashi | 110,000,000 | Kaito Onishi (1) | 7.29 | ||
| 11 Sep | Shinhan Donghae Open | Nara | ₩1,400,000,000 | Kazuki Higa (5) | 9.03 | ASA, KOR | |
| 18 Sep | ANA Open | Hokkaidō | 100,000,000 | Tomoharu Otsuki (2) | 7.08 | ||
| 25 Sep | Panasonic Open Golf Championship | Hyōgo | 100,000,000 | Taiga Semikawa (a) (1) | 7.51 | ||
| 2 Oct | Vantelin Tokai Classic | Aichi | 110,000,000 | Riki Kawamoto (2) | 7.36 | ||
| 9 Oct | For The Players by The Players | Gunma | 50,000,000 | Shintaro Kobayashi (1) | 4.33 | New tournament | |
| 23 Oct | Japan Open Golf Championship | Hyōgo | 210,000,000 | Taiga Semikawa (a) (2) | 8.57 | Japan major | |
| 30 Oct | Heiwa PGM Championship | Ibaraki | 150,000,000 | Rikuya Hoshino (6) | 6.11 | ||
| 6 Nov | Mynavi ABC Championship | Hyōgo | 120,000,000 | Mikumu Horikawa (4) | 6.12 | ||
| 13 Nov | Mitsui Sumitomo Visa Taiheiyo Masters | Shizuoka | 200,000,000 | Ryo Ishikawa (18) | 6.15 | ||
| 20 Nov | Dunlop Phoenix Tournament | Miyazaki | 200,000,000 | Kazuki Higa (6) | 9.54 | ||
| 27 Nov | Casio World Open | Kōchi | 200,000,000 |  Chan Kim (8) | 6.73 | ||
| 4 Dec | Golf Nippon Series JT Cup | Tokyo | 130,000,000 | Hideto Tanihara (17) | 4.84 | Japan major |
Unofficial events
The following events were sanctioned by the Japan Golf Tour, but did not carry official money, nor were wins official.
| Date | Tournament | Location | Purse (¥) | Winner(s) | OWGR points | Other tours[lower-alpha 2] | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 23 Jan | SMBC Singapore Open | Singapore | US$1,250,000 |  Sadom Kaewkanjana | 14 | ASA | |
| 10 Apr | Masters Tournament | United States | US$15,000,000 | Scottie Scheffler | 100 | Major championship | |
| 22 May | PGA Championship | United States | US$15,000,000 | Justin Thomas | 100 | Major championship | |
| 19 Jun | U.S. Open | United States | US$17,500,000 |  Matt Fitzpatrick | 100 | Major championship | |
| 17 Jul | The Open Championship | Scotland | US$14,000,000 |  Cameron Smith | 100 | Major championship | |
| 16 Oct | Zozo Championship | Chiba | US$11,000,000 | Keegan Bradley | 31.39 | PGAT | |
| 11 Dec | Hitachi 3Tours Championship | Chiba | 57,000,000 | Japan Golf Tour | n/a | Team event |
The money list was based on prize money won during the season, calculated in Japanese yen.[5] The top three players on the money list earned status to play on the 2023 European Tour (DP World Tour).[6][7]
| Position | Player | Prize money (¥) | Status earned |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Kazuki Higa | 181,598,825 | Promoted to European Tour |
| 2 | Rikuya Hoshino | 114,404,050 | |
| 3 | Aguri Iwasaki | 96,670,570 | |
| 4 | Mikumu Horikawa | 95,594,744 | |
| 5 | Yuto Katsuragawa | 87,970,697 |
| Award | Winner | Ref. |
|---|---|---|
| Most Valuable Player | Kazuki Higa | [8] |
| Rookie of the Year (Shimada Trophy) | Yuto Katsuragawa | [8] |
| Duration | 6 April 2022 (2022-04-06) – 14 October 2022 (2022-10-14) |
|---|---|
| Number of official events | 14 |
| Most wins | Takashi Ogiso (2) Yujiro Ohori (2) |
| Money list | Yujiro Ohori |
← 2020–21 2023 → | |
The 2022 Japan Challenge Tour, titled as the 2022 Abema Tour for sponsorship reasons, was the 37th season of the Japan Challenge Tour, the official development tour to the Japan Golf Tour.
Schedule
The following table lists official events during the 2022 season.[9]
| Date | Tournament | Location | Purse (¥) | Winner[lower-alpha 3] | OWGR points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 8 Apr | Novil Cup | Tokushima | 15,000,000 | Yuto Soeda (1) | 4 |
| 22 Apr | i Golf Shaper Challenge | Fukuoka | 15,000,000 | Hiroki Tanaka (1) | 4 |
| 27 May | Taiheiyo Club Challenge Tournament | Saitama | 15,000,000 | Taisei Yamada (1) | 4 |
| 10 Jun | Landic Challenge 9 | Fukuoka | 15,000,000 | Taiko Nishiyama (1) | 4 |
| 17 Jun | Japan Create Challenge | Fukuoka | 15,000,000 | Taiga Semikawa (a) (1) | 4 |
| 25 Jun | Daisendori Cup | Tottori | 18,000,000 | Shota Matsumoto (1) | 4 |
| 23 Jul | Japan Players Championship Challenge | Fukui | 15,000,000 | Chisato Takamiya (a) (1) | 4 |
| 29 Jul | Minami Akita CC Michinoku Challenge | Akita | 15,000,000 | Takashi Ogiso (2) | 4 |
| 3 Sep | Dunlop Phoenix Tournament Challenge | Fukushima | 15,000,000 | Masayuki Yamashita (a) (1) | 2.13 |
| 16 Sep | PGM Challenge | Niigata | 15,000,000 | Yujiro Ohori (2) | 1.92 |
| 23 Sep | ISPS Handa Hero ni nare! Challenge Tournament | Shizuoka | 23,000,000 | Masanori Kobayashi (3) | 1.98 |
| 30 Sep | Elite Grips Challenge | Hyōgo | 15,000,000 | Takashi Ogiso (3) | 2.14 |
| 7 Oct | Ryo Ishikawa Everyone Project Challenge | Tochigi | 15,000,000 | Takuya Higa (1) | 1.82 |
| 14 Oct | Delight Works JGTO Final | Ibaraki | 20,000,000 | Yujiro Ohori (3) | 2.57 |
Money list
The money list was based on prize money won during the season, calculated in Japanese yen.[10][11] The top 20 players on the money list earned status to play on the 2023 Japan Golf Tour.[12]
| Position | Player | Prize money (¥) |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Yujiro Ohori | 7,798,551 |
| 2 | Takashi Ogiso | 7,603,935 |
| 3 | Terumichi Kakazu | 6,315,737 |
| 4 | Taiko Nishiyama | 4,879,779 |
| 5 | Shota Matsumoto | 4,870,634 |
- ASA − Asian Tour; EUR − European Tour; KOR − Korean Tour; PGAT − PGA Tour.
- The number in brackets after each winner's name is the number of Japan Challenge Tour events they had won up to and including that tournament. It is rare for someone to accumulate many wins on the Japan Challenge Tour as success at this level usually leads to promotion to the Japan Golf Tour.
- Smith, Ben (2 October 2022). "Japan Golf Tour releases statement about LIV Golf Invitational Series". Golfmagic. Retrieved 2 October 2022.
- Flushing It [@flushingitgolf] (1 October 2022). "The Japan Golf Tour has released a statement in regard to the PGA Tour v LIV situation" (Tweet). Retrieved 2 October 2022 – via Twitter.
- Beall, Joel (5 December 2022). "PGA Tour and DP World Tour announce alliance with Japan Golf Tour". Golf Digest. Retrieved 8 December 2022.
- "2022 Tour Tournaments". Japan Golf Tour Organization. Retrieved 10 April 2023.
- "2022 Money Ranking". Japan Golf Tour Organization. Retrieved 4 December 2022.
- "Top-3 Japan Tour Order of Merit finishers to receive DP World Tour membership". News Nine. 5 December 2022. Retrieved 1 January 2023.
- "Japan's magnificent seven on the DP World Tour competing at the ISPS Handa Championship". European Tour. 19 April 2023. Retrieved 10 September 2023.
Along with Higa and Hoshino, Iwasaki secured his exemption to play on the DP World Tour this season by finishing as one of the top three players on the Japan Golf Tour Money List (not otherwise exempt) last year.
- "Kazuki Higa tops money list and named Most Valuable Player at JGTO awards ceremony". ParGolf. 5 December 2022. Retrieved 27 June 2023.
Rookie Award Shimada Trophy: Yuto Katsuragawa
- "2022 Challenge Schedule". Japan Golf Tour Organization. Retrieved 15 September 2023.
- "2022 Challenge Money Ranking". Japan Golf Tour Organization. Retrieved 29 December 2022.
- "大堀裕次郎が最終戦を制し、逆転賞金王に輝く！" [Yujiro Ohori wins the final match and wins the comeback prize king!] (in Japanese). Japan Golf Tour Organization. 14 October 2022. Retrieved 26 July 2023.
- "Abema Tour 2022 season tees off". Japan Golf Tour Organization. 6 April 2022. Retrieved 15 September 2023.
Players who finish inside the top-20 on the money list will earn their main JGTO cards in 2023.