The Mynavi ABC Championship(マイナビABCチャンピオンシップゴルフトーナメント, Mainabi ei-bī-shī champyon gorufu tōnamento) was a professional golf tournament on the Japan Golf Tour. It was played at the ABC Golf Club in Katō, Hyōgo, usually in October or November. It was founded in 1971 as a Japan vs. United States team match (there was also individual prize money and the event counted as an official win on tour). In 1988, it became a full-field individual event. The event is sponsored by Asahi Broadcasting Corporation and Mynavi Corporation.

History

The tournament was founded in 1971 as the Miki Gold Cup, a nine-man team match between golfers from Japan and the United States. Results were based on the aggregate of the best seven scores from each team after 54 holes of stroke play competition; there was also a prize for the best individual score. The event was renamed as the ABC Cup in 1972. The following year, the best eight scores were used to determine the winner, and in 1975 the event was extended to 72 holes.

Between 1982 and 1984 the event was titled as the Goldwin Cup (1982–83) and the Uchida Yoko Cup (1984), during which time it was contested as stroke play matches with two points were awarded for a match win and one point for a tie. The first two rounds were played as better ball pairs and the final two rounds as singles, from which the scores were used to determine the individual winner. In 1985 the event reverted to its earlier format and name.

In 1988, the tournament became a regular 72 hole stroke play event on the Japan Golf Tour, since when it has always been held at ABC Golf Club in Katō, Hyōgo. Sponsored by Philip Morris International, it was titled using the Lark brand as the ABC Lark Cup or Lark Cup for five years, until 1994 when it became the Philip Morris Championship. After Philip Morris sponsorship came to an end, in 2003 the event became titled the ABC Championship, with Mynavi being added as title sponsor in 2008.

In 2023, following the 2024 schedule announcement by the Japan Golf Tour, it was confirmed that the 2023 tournament would be the last and would not return from 2024 onwards.

Tournament hosts

YearsVenueLocation
1988–presentABC Golf ClubKatō, Hyōgo
1983Taiheiyo Club (Rokko Course)Hyōgo
1982, 1984Sobhu Country Club (Sobhu Course)Inzai, Chiba
1979–1981, 1985–1987Sports Shinko Country ClubKawanishi, Hyōgo
1976–1978Harima Country ClubOno, Hyōgo
1975Ibaraki Kokusai Golf ClubIbaraki, Osaka
1973–1974Hashimoto Country ClubHashimoto, Wakayama
1972Ikeda Country ClubIkeda, Osaka
1971Perfect Liberty (PL) Country ClubTondabayashi, Osaka

Winners

YearWinnerScoreTo parMargin of victoryRunner(s)-up
Mynavi ABC Championship
2023Japan Keita Nakajima264−243 strokesSouth Africa Shaun Norris
2022Japan Mikumu Horikawa271−172 strokesJapan Hiroshi Iwata Japan Daijiro Izumida Japan Riki Kawamoto
2021Japan Yosuke Asaji272−162 strokesJapan Mikumu Horikawa Japan Tomohiro Ishizaka
2020Cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic
2019South Korea Hwang Jung-gon269−191 strokeJapan Shugo Imahira
2018Japan Yuta Kinoshita273−15PlayoffJapan Masahiro Kawamura
2017Japan Tatsuya Kodai203−131 strokeSouth Korea Im Sung-jae Japan Yūsaku Miyazato Japan Ryutaro Nagano
2016Japan Shingo Katayama (4)276−121 strokeJapan Shintaro Kobayashi
2015South Korea Kim Kyung-tae (2)272−122 strokesJapan Daisuke Kataoka Australia Won Joon Lee Japan Katsumasa Miyamoto
2014Japan Ryuichi Oda263−215 strokesJapan Koumei Oda Japan Hideto Tanihara
2013Japan Yuta Ikeda269−15PlayoffSouth Korea Hur Suk-ho
2012United States Han Lee271−171 strokeJapan Katsumasa Miyamoto
2011Japan Koichiro Kawano273−15PlayoffSouth Korea Bae Sang-moon
2010South Korea Kim Kyung-tae275−131 strokeJapan Ryo Ishikawa
2009Japan Toru Suzuki274−145 strokesJapan Takashi Kanemoto
2008Japan Ryo Ishikawa279−91 strokeJapan Keiichiro Fukabori
ABC Championship
2007Philippines Frankie Miñoza274−14PlayoffSouth Korea Lee Dong-hwan
2006Japan Shingo Katayama (3)271−17PlayoffSouth Korea Yang Yong-eun
2005Japan Shingo Katayama (2)274−142 strokesFiji Dinesh Chand
2004Japan Makoto Inoue273−151 strokeJapan Ryoken Kawagishi Japan Toru Suzuki
2003Japan Shingo Katayama265−239 strokesJapan Katsumasa Miyamoto
Philip Morris K.K. Championship
2002Australia Brendan Jones269−192 strokesJapan Toshimitsu Izawa
2001Japan Toshimitsu Izawa272−161 strokeJapan Hidemichi Tanaka Japan Toru Taniguchi
Philip Morris Championship
2000Japan Toru Taniguchi276−121 strokeJapan Hidemichi Tanaka Japan Shingo Katayama
1999Japan Ryoken Kawagishi (2)270−181 strokeJapan Katsunori Kuwabara
1998Japan Masashi Ozaki (2)275−131 strokeParaguay Carlos Franco Japan Mitsuo Harada
1997United States Brian Watts (2)280−82 strokesJapan Kaname Yokoo
1996Japan Naomichi Ozaki (2)278−104 strokesUnited States Russ Cochran United States David Ishii Japan Masashi Ozaki
1995Japan Hidemichi Tanaka278−101 strokeJapan Naomichi Ozaki Japan Nobumitsu Yuhara
1994United States Brian Watts276−121 strokeJapan Masashi Ozaki Japan Naomichi Ozaki United States Duffy Waldorf
Lark Cup
1993Japan Hajime Meshiai283−51 strokeJapan Masahiro Kuramoto Japan Naomichi Ozaki
1992Japan Naomichi Ozaki279−91 strokeJapan Masashi Ozaki
ABC Lark Cup
1991Japan Yoshikazu Yokoshima280−82 strokesAustralia Roger Mackay
1990Japan Ryoken Kawagishi277−112 strokesJapan Masashi Ozaki
1989Australia Brian Jones280−84 strokesJapan Toshiaki Sudo
1988Japan Katsunari Takahashi277−111 strokeJapan Masashi Ozaki

Japan vs USA team matches

YearWinning teamScoreMargin of victoryIndividual winner(s)ScoreTo parMargin of victoryRunner(s)-upRef.
ABC Japan-U.S. Match
1987Japan2,2273 strokesUnited States Andy Bean269−195 strokesJapan Masahiro Kuramoto
1986United States2,2297 strokesUnited States Curtis Strange271−174 strokesUnited States Chip Beck
1985Japan2,5572 strokesJapan Tateo Ozaki United States Corey Pavin276−12Title shared
Uchida Yoko Cup Japan vs USA Match
1984United States30–18United States Tom Watson (2)135−71 strokeUnited States Mark O'Meara Japan Naomichi Ozaki
Goldwin Cup Japan vs USA
1983United States29–19Japan Tsuneyuki Nakajima141−31 strokeUnited States Hale Irwin
1982United States33–15United States Bob Gilder United States Calvin Peete134−10Title shared
ABC Cup Japan vs USA
1981United States2,24635 strokesUnited States Bobby Clampett271−177 strokesJapan Akira Yabe
ABC Japan vs USA Golf Matches
1980Japan United States2,280TieUnited States Jerry Pate276−121 strokeUnited States Tom Purtzer Japan Norio Suzuki
1979Japan2,3065 strokesUnited States Tom Purtzer276−1210 strokesUnited States Bill Rogers
1978Japan2,27353 strokesJapan Isao Aoki (2)273−155 strokesJapan Kosaku Shimada
1977Japan2,0792 strokesJapan Isao Aoki280−82 strokesUnited States Tom Weiskopf
1976Japan2,27315 strokesUnited States Tom Watson277−113 strokesJapan Isao Aoki
1975Japan2,26642 strokesJapan Tōru Nakamura273−157 strokesUnited States Al Geiberger
1974United States1,7529 strokesJapan Teruo Sugihara209−71 strokeUnited States Hubert Green
1973Japan1,78517 strokesUnited States Al Geiberger218+22 strokesJapan Takashi Murakami
1972United States1,48818 strokesUnited States Tommy Aaron209−41 strokeUnited States Bert Yancey
Miki Gold Cup
1971United States1,4849 strokesUnited States Billy Casper Japan Masashi Ozaki208−8Title shared

Notes

External links

  • (in Japanese)