Japanese 500th-ranked golfer punches ticket to 2026 Masters, The Open
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Naoyuki Kataoka smiling with the trophy after winning the Japan Open golf tournament.
AFP
TOKYO – Naoyuki Kataoka, ranked 500th in the Official World Golf Ranking last week, secured invites to the 2026 Masters and The Open Championship by winning the Japan Open on Oct 19.
The Japanese sunk a par putt on the first play-off hole to outlast Satoshi Hara for the victory, which vaulted him 145 spots to No. 355.
More importantly, it took advantage of a change in the qualifying rules for the Masters, which no longer hands out invitations for winners of fall PGA Tour events. It instead awards them to winners of certain national open championships.
One of them is the Japan Open, whose winner also earns an invite to the Open – also known as the British Open – by the R&A via the Open Qualifying Series. The 2026 edition will be at Royal Birkdale.
Kataoka shot a three-under 277 to top the 120-player field at Nikko Country Club and will play in the Masters and the Open for the first time. His highest world ranking was 164th back in 2021, following a tie for second at the Dunlop Phoenix on the Japanese tour.
“It’s really a dream come true for me,” the 27-year-old said, via The Japan Times. “I’m really happy to be able to play in the Masters and The Open.
“I’ll work as hard as I can, prepare by April, and do my best to be able to compete. I felt a really strong sense of accomplishment as I finally won again after enduring so many near-misses during those barren four years (since the 2021 Japan Players Championship).”
Other events that award invites to the Masters and The Open are the Australian, Hong Kong and South African Opens.
Meanwhile, the PGA Tour is introducing a new tournament for the FedExCup Fall series in 2026, marking its return to Austin, Texas.
The event’s title sponsor will be Good Good, a golf-centric brand and YouTube channel that has close to two million subscribers. The Good Good Championship is slated for Nov 12-15 at Omni Barton Creek Resort & Spa’s Fazio Canyons Course.
In a release, the PGA Tour said Good Good raised US$45 million earlier in 2025 in an effort to redouble their “commitment to live events and live programming”, which has aired not only on the YouTube channel but also on the Golf Channel and Peacock.
This will be the tour’s first event in Austin since the end of the World Golf Championship Matchplay in 2023. REUTERS, AFP
