ISPS HANDA Events Set to Light Up Hokkaido
Two ISPS HANDA tournaments will take centre stage on the JGTO over the next two weeks in Hokkaido, promising high drama and low scores.
Billed as Explosion in the Summer – How Many Birdies Can You Make? and Summer Golf Battle Tournament – Who’s the Strongest?, these back-to-back events will feature a strong mix of Japanese and international stars, with close to ¥300 million in total prize money up for grabs.
The first showdown, Explosion in the Summer – How Many Birdies Can You Make?, tees off Thursday at Gozensui Golf Club. The tournament offers a ¥60,000,000 purse, with ¥12,000,000 going to the champion.
Among those eyeing the winner’s cheque is Riki Kawamoto, who has posted three top-10s, including two runner-up finishes, in his last nine starts. The 25-year-old is eager to end a three-year title drought.
“I feel like my golf has been going the way I want it to,” Kawamoto said. “To keep that form, I’ve been doing practice rounds and adding extra training sessions to maintain my condition and momentum. It’s more important to always stay near the top (of the leaderboard), so this week, next week, and beyond, I want to put myself in position to contend—and seize any winning chance that comes.”
For Yuto Katsuragawa, this week marks a special homecoming. The 26-year-old earned his DP World Tour card after winning last year’s ISPS HANDA Championship and will make his first JGTO start of the season. He’s hoping a return to familiar surroundings will inspire another win back on home soil.
“It’s been a mix of good and bad,” Katsuragawa admitted of his foray into Europe. “There are courses that suit me and courses that don’t, and it’s shown clearly in my results in Europe. I’ve done well where I feel comfortable, but struggled elsewhere. Since many of the courses were new to me, I sometimes didn’t know how to approach them.
“The Japan Tour has probably changed in many ways while I’ve been away, so I want to get inspired. Just being able to play in this tournament makes me feel happy and grateful. I want to receive energy from everyone here, absorb what I can, and turn it into positives for my game.”
Also in the field is veteran Hideto Tanihara, whose experience and precision have kept him competitive well into his forties. Known for his strategic approach, Tanihara is relishing the birdie-friendly setup at Gozensui.
“The course rewards aggressive play, and I think we’ll see a lot of low scores,” Tanihara said. “For me, the challenge is to balance going for birdies with avoiding mistakes. It’s easy to get carried away, so my plan is to stay disciplined while taking my chances when they come. These ISPS HANDA events always have a great atmosphere, and that brings out the best in us players.”
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AloJapan.com