Keita Nakajima (Japanese: 中島啓太, born 24 June 2000) is a Japanese professional golfer. He had an exceptionally successful amateur career and was number 1 in the World Amateur Golf Ranking for a record 87 weeks. He also won the Panasonic Open on the Japan Golf Tour while still an amateur.[2][3]
| Keita Nakajima | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Nakajima in 2021 | |||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||
| Born | 24 June 2000 Saitama, Japan | ||||||||
| Height | 5 ft 10 in (178 cm) | ||||||||
| Weight | 160 lb (73 kg) | ||||||||
| Sporting nationality |  Japan | ||||||||
| Career | |||||||||
| College | Nippon Sport Science University | ||||||||
| Turned professional | 2022 | ||||||||
| Current tour(s) | European Tour Japan Golf Tour Korn Ferry Tour | ||||||||
| Professional wins | 5 | ||||||||
| Highest ranking | 75 (14 April 2024)[1] (as of 24 November 2024) | ||||||||
| Number of wins by tour | |||||||||
| European Tour | 1 | ||||||||
| Japan Golf Tour | 4 | ||||||||
| Best results in major championships | |||||||||
| Masters Tournament | CUT: 2022 | ||||||||
| PGA Championship | CUT: 2024 | ||||||||
| U.S. Open | CUT: 2022 | ||||||||
| The Open Championship | CUT: 2022, 2023, 2024 | ||||||||
| Achievements and awards | |||||||||
| |||||||||
Amateur career
editNakajima started playing golf at six and had a successful amateur career, winning the 2018 Australian Amateur and the 2021 Japan Amateur Championship, after finishing runner-up at the event in 2015, 2017 and 2019. He was runner-up at the 2017 Duke of York Young Champions Trophy in England and the 2019 Australian Master of the Amateurs. In 2018, he was runner-up at the Asia-Pacific Amateur Championship, before winning the event in 2021 in a playoff with Hong Kong's Taichi Kho. Nakajima became the third Japanese champion of the tournament, joining Hideki Matsuyama and Takumi Kanaya.[4]
He played in a number of representative matches, including the 2017 Nomura Cup, the 2022 Eisenhower Trophy and the 2019 Arnold Palmer Cup, which the international team won 33½–26½ over the American team. Nakajima won both the individual and team gold medals at the 2018 Asian Games. He was world ranked number 1 in the World Amateur Golf Ranking for a record 87 weeks between 2020 and 2022, surpassing Jon Rahm's previous record of 60 weeks.[4] He won the Mark H. McCormack Medal for 2021 and 2022, the first two-time recipient.[5]
While still an amateur, Nakajima played in a number of professional tournaments.[6] In 2021, he was runner-up at the Token Homemate Cup, a stroke behind Takumi Kanaya, and won the Panasonic Open in a playoff. After he made the cut at the 2022 Sony Open in Hawaii, he rose to 188th in the Official World Golf Rankings.[7]
Professional career
editNakajima turned professional in the fall of 2022 and made his professional PGA Tour debut at the 2022 Zozo Championship, where he finished T12.[8]
In 2023, Nakajima won three times on the Japan Golf Tour in his rookie season. He topped the money list,[9] as well as claiming Most Valuable Player and Rookie of the Year honours.[10]
In March 2024, Nakajima claimed his first victory on the European Tour, winning the Hero Indian Open wire-to-wire by four shots.[11]
Amateur wins
edit- 2016 TrueVisions International Junior Championship, Faldo Series Asia Japan Championship
- 2017 Kanto Amateur Championship
- 2018 Australian Amateur, Asian Games (Men's individual)
- 2021 Japan Amateur Championship, Asia-Pacific Amateur Championship
Source:[12]
Professional wins (5)
editEuropean Tour wins (1)
edit| No. | Date | Tournament | Winning score | Margin of victory |
Runners-up |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 31 Mar 2024 | Hero Indian Open1 | −17 (65-65-68-73=271) | 4 strokes |  Veer Ahlawat,  Sebastian Söderberg, Johannes Veerman
|
1Co-sanctioned by the Professional Golf Tour of India
Japan Golf Tour wins (4)
edit| No. | Date | Tournament | Winning score | Margin of victory |
Runner-up |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 26 Sep 2021 | Panasonic Open (as an amateur) |
−18 (69-68-65-68=270) | Playoff | Ryutaro Nagano
|
| 2 | 11 Jun 2023 | ASO Iizuka Challenged Golf Tournament | −29 (67-64-63-65=259) | Playoff | Takumi Kanaya
|
| 3 | 6 Aug 2023 | Yokohama Minato Championship | −13 (69-69-67-66=271) | 1 stroke | Taiga Semikawa
|
| 4 | 5 Nov 2023 | Mynavi ABC Championship | −24 (63-69-66-66=264) | 3 strokes |  Shaun Norris
|
Japan Golf Tour playoff record (2–1)
| No. | Year | Tournament | Opponent | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2021 | Panasonic Open (as an amateur) |
Ryutaro Nagano
|
Won with par on first extra hole |
| 2 | 2023 | Gateway to The Open Mizuno Open | Kensei Hirata
|
Lost to birdie on third extra hole |
| 3 | 2023 | ASO Iizuka Challenged Golf Tournament | Takumi Kanaya
|
Won with birdie on second extra hole |
Results in major championships
edit| Tournament | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Masters Tournament | CUT | ||
| PGA Championship | CUT | ||
| U.S. Open | CUT | ||
| The Open Championship | CUT | CUT | CUT |
CUT = missed the halfway cut
Team appearances
editAmateur
- Nomura Cup (representing Japan): 2017
- Junior Golf World Cup (representing Japan): 2018
- Arnold Palmer Cup (representing International team): 2019 (winners)
- Eisenhower Trophy (representing Japan): 2018, 2022
References
edit- ^ "Week 15 2024 Ending 14 Apr 2024" (pdf). OWGR. Retrieved 15 April 2024.
- ^ "10 Things You Didn't Know About Keita Nakajima". Golf Monthly. Retrieved 18 December 2022.
- ^ "Why the latest change atop the World Amateur Golf Ranking is genuinely historic". Golf Digest. Retrieved 18 December 2022.
- ^ a b "Keita Nakajima Becomes the First Two-Time McCormack Medal Recipient". Sportslook. Retrieved 18 December 2022.
- ^ "Keita Nakajima awarded Mark H McCormack Medal as world's leading men's amateur". The R&A. Retrieved 18 December 2022.
- ^ "Teary-eyed Nakajima a tough nut on golf course". Golfing Hub. Retrieved 18 December 2022.
- ^ "Keita Nakajima". OWGR. Retrieved 18 December 2022.
- ^ "Keita Nakajima walk-and-talk at the Sony Open". PGA Tour. Retrieved 18 December 2022.
- ^ "Nakajima tops JGTO money ranking". Japan Golf Tour Organization. 27 November 2023. Retrieved 27 November 2023.
- ^ "Nakajima Dominates Season-Ending Awards". Asia-Pacific Golf Confederation. 8 December 2023. Retrieved 14 December 2023.
- ^ Roberts, Andy (31 March 2024). "Nakajima wins first DP World Tour title then says what fans now come to expect". GolfMagic. Retrieved 31 March 2024.
- ^ "Keita Nakajima". World Amateur Golf Ranking. Retrieved 18 December 2022.
External links
edit- Keita Nakajima at the Japan Golf Tour official site
- Keita Nakajima at the PGA Tour official site
- Keita Nakajima at the Official World Golf Ranking official site