Sagami - Kanto - Japan

When first laid out in 1931, the course at Sagami Country Club wasn’t situated in a built up area but it’s now entirely surrounded by residential properties due to the urban expansion of nearby Yokohama city.

Rokuro Akaboshi, who was the first golfer – and so far the only amateur – to win the Japan Open in 1927, designed the Sagami course in 1931 though it was upgraded by Seiichi Inoue during the 1950s before undergoing an extensive renovation in the 1990s.

The club still employs a dual green system, with every hole having a “Pencross green” and a “Southshore green,” and these are constructed with two different grass types to handle the hot and humid summers and short, cold winters.

In general, the landscape is fairly flat so walking isn’t an issue at Sagami. Tree-lined fairways are generally wide and forgiving, though some peripheral fairways have high netting along one side to protect neighbouring properties from stray golf balls.