# The Crowns

The Crowns (中日クラウンズ, Chūnichi kuraunzu) is a professional golf tournament that is played over Nagoya Golf Club's Wagō Course in Tōgō, Aichi, Japan. Founded in 1960, it has been an event on the Japan Golf Tour schedule since the tour's first season in 1973.

## History

The Crowns was established as the Invitation by Chūbu Japan, All Japan Amateur and Professional Golf Championship (中部日本招待全日本アマ・プロゴルフ選手権) in 1960. The concept of the championship was competition among amateur and professional golf players. It has been played over the Wagō Course at Nagoya Golf Club every year except between 1962 and 1965, during which time it was held at Aichi Country Club (1962 and 1965) and Miyoshi Country Club (1963 and 1964).
From the 10th anniversary in 1969 to the 50th anniversary in 2009, the tournament's official name was "International Invitational Golf THE CROWNS (国際招待ゴルフ 中日クラウンズ, Kokusai shōtai gorufu Chūnichi kuraunzu)", as organizers invited international golfers. Winners during this time include major champions Peter Thomson, David Graham, Scott Simpson, Greg Norman, Seve Ballesteros, Davis Love III, Darren Clarke and Justin Rose.
The tournament record is 260 (20 under par), set by Masashi Ozaki in 1995. In 2010, Ryo Ishikawa recorded a Tour record final round of 58 (12 under par) to take the title by five strokes. From 2002 to 2019 the purse was ¥120,000,000 with ¥24,000,000 going to the winner. This was reduced to ¥100,000,000 in 2021.

## Winners

| Year | Winner | Score | To par | Margin of victory | Runner(s)-up |
| The Crowns ||||||
| 2024 | Ren Yonezawa | 267 | −13 | 1 stroke | Naoyuki Kataoka |
| 2023 | Hiroshi Iwata (2) | 265 | −15 | 3 strokes | Rikuya Hoshino |
| 2022 | Yuki Inamori | 264 | −16 | 3 strokes | Hwang Jung-gon |
| 2021 | Hiroshi Iwata | 198 | −12 | 3 strokes | Katsumasa Miyamoto |
| 2020 | Cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic | Cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic | Cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic | Cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic | Cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic |
| 2019 | Katsumasa Miyamoto | 271 | −9 | 1 stroke | Shugo Imahira |
| 2018 | Yang Yong-eun | 268 | −12 | 4 strokes | Hwang Jung-gon Anthony Quayle |
| 2017 | Yūsaku Miyazato | 267 | −13 | 1 stroke | Yoshinori Fujimoto Toru Taniguchi |
| 2016 | Kim Kyung-tae | 270 | −10 | Playoff | Daisuke Kataoka |
| 2015 | Jang Ik-jae (2) | 270 | −10 | 4 strokes | Tomohiro Kondo Hideto Tanihara Kazuhiro Yamashita |
| 2014 | Kim Hyung-sung | 269 | −11 | 4 strokes | Jang Ik-jae |
| 2013 | Michio Matsumura | 278 | −2 | 1 stroke | Hideki Matsuyama |
| 2012 | Jang Ik-jae | 272 | −8 | 2 strokes | Steven Conran Yoshikazu Haku |
| 2011 | Brendan Jones | 271 | −9 | Playoff | Jang Ik-jae |
| 2010 | Ryo Ishikawa | 267 | −13 | 5 strokes | Hiroyuki Fujita Paul Sheehan |
| 2009 | Tetsuji Hiratsuka | 263 | −17 | 7 strokes | Kenichi Kuboya |
| 2008 | Tomohiro Kondo | 271 | −9 | Playoff | Hiroyuki Fujita |
| 2007 | Hirofumi Miyase | 278 | −2 | Playoff | Toru Taniguchi |
| 2006 | Shingo Katayama (2) | 262 | −18 | 2 strokes | Nozomi Kawahara |
| 2005 | Naomichi Ozaki | 269 | −11 | Playoff | Steven Conran |
| 2004 | Shingo Katayama | 264 | −16 | 2 strokes | Paul Sheehan |
| 2003 | Hidemasa Hoshino | 270 | −10 | 3 strokes | Toshimitsu Izawa Zaw Moe Taichi Teshima |
| 2002 | Justin Rose | 266 | −14 | 5 strokes | Prayad Marksaeng |
| 2001 | Darren Clarke | 267 | −13 | 4 strokes | Keiichiro Fukabori Shinichi Yokota |
| 2000 | Hidemichi Tanaka | 272 | −8 | 5 strokes | Mitsutaka Kusakabe |
| 1999 | Yasuharu Imano | 271 | −9 | 1 stroke | Naomichi Ozaki |
| 1998 | Davis Love III | 269 | −11 | 8 strokes | Rick Gibson Masanobu Kimura Brian Watts |
| 1997 | Masashi Ozaki (5) | 267 | −13 | 2 strokes | Brian Watts |
| 1996 | Masashi Ozaki (4) | 268 | −12 | 4 strokes | Katsuyoshi Tomori |
| 1995 | Masashi Ozaki (3) | 260 | −20 | 5 strokes | Nobuo Serizawa |
| 1994 | Roger Mackay | 269 | −11 | 2 strokes | Naomichi Ozaki |
| 1993 | Peter Senior | 270 | −10 | 1 stroke | Gary Hallberg Masashi Ozaki |
| 1992 | Masashi Ozaki (2) | 270 | −10 | 4 strokes | Brent Franklin Peter Senior |
| 1991 | Seve Ballesteros | 275 | −5 | 1 stroke | Roger Mackay |
| 1990 | Noboru Sugai | 276 | −4 | Playoff | Steve Pate |
| 1989 | Greg Norman | 272 | −8 | 3 strokes | Blaine McCallister Koichi Suzuki |
| 1988 | Scott Simpson (2) | 278 | −2 | 3 strokes | David Ishii Masashi Ozaki |
| 1987 | Masashi Ozaki | 268 | −12 | 6 strokes | Isao Aoki Ian Baker-Finch Masahiro Kuramoto Yoshitaka Yamamoto |
| Chunichi Crowns ||||||
| 1986 | David Ishii | 274 | −6 | 4 strokes | Tsuneyuki Nakajima |
| 1985 | Seiji Ebihara | 276 | −4 | 2 strokes | Tsuneyuki Nakajima |
| 1984 | Scott Simpson | 275 | −5 | Playoff | Isao Aoki |
| 1983 | Chen Tze-ming | 280 | E | Playoff | Kikuo Arai David Ishii |
| 1982 | Gary Hallberg | 272 | −8 | 3 strokes | Shigeru Uchida |
| 1981 | Graham Marsh (2) | 277 | −3 | 2 strokes | D. A. Weibring |
| 1980 | Isao Aoki (5) | 280 | E | 2 strokes | Graham Marsh |
| 1979 | Isao Aoki (4) | 279 | −1 | 1 stroke | Tōru Nakamura Haruo Yasuda |
| 1978 | Isao Aoki (3) | 270 | −10 | 5 strokes | Masashi Ozaki |
| 1977 | Graham Marsh | 280 | E | 4 strokes | Kenji Mori |
| 1976 | David Graham | 276 | −4 | 1 stroke | Yasuhiro Miyamoto |
| 1975 | Isao Aoki (2) | 272 | −8 | 1 stroke | Teruo Sugihara |
| 1974 | Takashi Murakami | 272 | −8 | 6 strokes | Masashi Ozaki |
| 1973 | Isao Aoki | 270 | −10 | 1 stroke | Lu Liang-Huan |
| 1972 | Peter Thomson (2) | 266 | −14 | 6 strokes | Terry Kendall |
| 1971 | Lu Liang-Huan | 274 | −6 | 3 strokes | Peter Thomson |
| 1970 | Haruo Yasuda (2) | 268 | −12 | 3 strokes | Teruo Suzumura |
| 1969 | Peter Thomson | 274 | −6 | Playoff | Tadashi Kitta |
| 1968 | Haruo Yasuda | 278 | −2 | Playoff | Hisashi Suzumura |
| 1967 | Hsieh Yung-yo | 273 | −7 | 1 stroke | Hisashi Suzumura |
| 1966 | Shigeru Uchida | 274 | −6 | 1 stroke | Tadashi Kitta Haruyoshi Kobari |
| 1965 | Tadashi Kitta (2) | 291 | −5 | 1 stroke | Teruo Sugihara |
| 1964 | Teruo Sugihara | 294 | +6 | 1 stroke | Torakichi Nakamura |
| 1963 | Kenji Hosoishi | 290 | +2 | 2 strokes | Teruo Sugihara |
| 1962 | Tadashi Kitta | 299 | +3 | 1 stroke | Torakichi Nakamura |
| 1961 | Tomoo Ishii | 280 | E | Playoff | Orville Moody |
| 1960 | Torakichi Nakamura | 277 | −3 | 1 stroke | Koichi Ono |
Sources: