Japan Tour remains in Hokkaido
BY Bruce Young | Japan Tour | 2011 Sun Chlorella Classic | Preview | 28 Jul 2011
The Japan Golf Tour stays in Hokkaido this week for the Sun Chlorella tournament at Otaru Country Club.
Always one of the more lucrative events on the Japan Golf Tour, the tournament is the last before a two week break and sees the final appearance of the likes of former winner Ryo Ishikawa, Yuta Ikeda and Hiroyuki Fujita before they head off to the World Golf Championship event in Ohio next week and the US PGA Championship following.
The defending champion this week is Tadahiro Tayakama who won by three shots in 2010. Takayama won the opening event of the 2011 season but having missed three of his last four cuts he is struggling to regain that winning form.
Money list leader Kyung tae Kim is not in the field, preferring it would seem to prepare himself for the two big events in the US in the next two weeks.
The Australasian challenge is missing the former winner of this event Brendan Jones who is still enjoying the first few weeks with his newly arrived son Curtis, the Canberra resident expected to be back in action at the USPGA Championship in two weeks time.
There are several other Australasians in the field however headed by Paul Sheehan, David Smail, Steve Conran, Chris Campbell, Kurt Barnes, Neven Basic, Neil Sarkies and Richard Lee.
Conran finished third in last week’s Sega Sammy Cup and Barnes gets just his second start on the Japan Tour this season having finished 7th in his only other at the Crowns Tournament. Barnes made a great start to the recent Open Championship before missing the cut.
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