New PGA Tour Event In Japan Confirmed For 2019

Elliott Heath

The Zozo Championship will see the PGA Tour host an event in Japan for the first time next year

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New PGA Tour Event In Japan Confirmed For 2019

The PGA Tour has announced that it will host a tournament in Japan for the very first time next year.

The tournament, known as the Zozo Championship, will be co-sanctioned with the Japan Golf Tour and feature 10 players from that circuit as well as 60 from the PGA Tour plus eight special exemptions.

It will take place towards the end of October, replacing the CIMB Classic in Malaysia, and will join the PGA Tour’s Asian Swing along with the CJ Cup in South Korea and the WGC-HSBC Champions in China.

The Zozo Championship will see a huge purse of $9.75m, bigger than every single event on the PGA Tour outside of the Players, WGCs and majors.

The purse is $2.75m bigger than the CIMB Classic which it has replaced.

It may be early in the season for the PGA Tour, but it is very hard not to see the world’s best turning up.

“Today’s announcement further strengthens our presence in Asia and certainly comes at an opportune time with golf set to follow its highly successful return to the Olympics in Rio when Tokyo hosts the 2020 Games,” said Ty Votaw, PGA Tour Executive Vice President, International.

The 2019 Zozo Championship will take place from 24th-27th October 2019 at Accordia Golf Narashino Country Club. It will be on the schedule for at least the next six years.

Five Japanese players have won on the PGA Tour through the years with five-time winner Hideki Matsuyama the most successful.

Shigeki Maruyama is the second-most successful Japanese player on the PGA Tour with three victories.

Satoshi Kodaira is the most recent Japanese winner who was victorious at the RBC Heritage earlier this year.

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