Taiheiyo (Mashiko PGA)

31^st

The Gotemba course is the flagship layout in the Taiheiyo Club’s 18-course portfolio, but the Mashiko PGA course (designed by Shunsuke Kato in 1976 and renovated by the same architect in 2002) may well be the most demanding of them all.

Horai

32^nd

Located next to Nishinasuno Golf Club, the course at Horai Country Club is a 1990 Robert von Hagge-design that twists and turns through forested terrain where doglegs are aplenty and the green complexes often large, undulating and very tricky to read. It’s a clever amalgam of modern and classic design.

Osaka

33^rd

Osamu Ueda originally designed the course at Osaka Golf Club back in 1937 and it’s routed across high ground where panoramic views of Osaka Bay will be enjoyed from the rolling fairways.

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Nagoya (Wago)

34^th

Nagoya Golf Club was established in 1929, with Mitsuaki Otani setting out the Wago course for the founding members with the double green system that’s still used in the modern era.

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Passage Kinkai Island

35^th

Host to the Japan PGA Championship in 2010, won by Toru Taniguchi, the course at Passage Kinkai Island Golf Club is set on the western shore of Omura Bay and was designed by Yoshiaki Fujii, opening for play in 1992.

Katayamazu (Hakusan)

36^th

Established in the late 1950s, Katayamazu Golf Club brought the Hakusan course into play within three years of its formation.

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The Royal Golf Club

37^th

With the shortest par three measuring a mighty 239 yards and the longest par five weighing in at a whopping 705 yards, it’s no surprise to learn that The Royal Golf Club course can be stretched to an astonishing 8,143 yards from the tips.

Caledonian

38^th

Caledonian Golf Club is a 1990 J. Michael Poellot design with a back nine that impressed Tom Doak: “The Cape par-4 13th around the lake at the back of the clubhouse, the par-5 15th with its approach vaguely reminiscent of the 13th at Augusta, and the par-5 closer with an alternate fairway route like the 15th at Seminole.”

Fukuoka (Wajiro)

39^th

Beginning and ending with a par five, the 18-hole Wajiro course at Fukuoka Country Club is configured with two returning nines. The layout opened for play in 1952 and its two-green system endures to the present day.

Narusawa

40^th

Opened in 1994, the course at Narusawa Golf Club lies under the watchful gaze of Mount Fuji at an altitude of more than 3,500 feet. Unusually, a good number of holes on the outward half dogleg to the left, while coming home holes invariably dogleg right.