Tsuneyuki Nakajima


Tsuneyuki "Tommy" Nakajima is a Japanese professional golfer.

Career

Nakajima was born in Gunma. He turned professional in 1975. He has won 48 events on the Japan Golf Tour, ranking third on the most Japan Golf Tour wins list. He also was the leading money winner four times in five years: 1982, 1983, 1985 and 1986. He is second on the career money list.
Nakajima featured in the top 5 of the Official World Golf Rankings and was ranked in the top-10 for 85 weeks from their debut in 1986 to 1987. He ranked as high as fifth on its predecessor McCormack's World Golf Rankings.
At the 1978 Masters Tournament, Nakajima made a 13 on the par-5 13th hole. After hitting his fourth shot into Rae's Creek, Nakajima elected to play the ball rather than take a drop. He popped the ball straight up and it landed on his foot, causing a two-stroke penalty. When he handed the club to his caddie, it slipped out of his hand and fell into the creek, incurring another two-stroke penalty. He chipped over the green, chipped back on and two-putted for the highest single-hole score in the history of the tournament.
Also in 1978, Nakajima was in contention at The Open Championship on the third day at St Andrews until he putted into – and then took four attempts to escape from – the Road Hole bunker at the 17th for a quintuple bogey, which led the British tabloids to christen that bunker, for a while, "the Sands of Nakajima". Nakajima's best finish in a major was third at the 1988 PGA Championship.
He would also feature in an epic match at the 1982 Suntory World Match Play Championship at Wentworth when he lost to Sandy Lyle only after an extended playoff.

Amateur wins

this list may be incomplete

Professional wins (58)

Japan Golf Tour wins (48)

1Co-sanctioned by the Asia Golf Circuit
Japan Golf Tour playoff record
No.YearTournamentOpponentResult
11978Japan PGA Championship|1870

Other wins (5)

Japan Senior PGA Tour wins (5)

Results in major championships

Tournament1980198119821983198419851986198719881989
Masters TournamentT16T33T47T8CUTT33CUT
U.S. OpenT26CUTT53T9T32
The Open ChampionshipT36T8T59
PGA ChampionshipCUTT10CUTT47CUT3

Tournament200020012002
Masters Tournament
U.S. Open
The Open ChampionshipCUT
PGA Championship

CUT = missed the half-way cut
"T" indicates a tie for a place

Summary

  • Most consecutive cuts made – 4
  • Longest streak of top-10s – 1

Results in The Players Championship

CUT = missed the halfway cut
"T" indicates a tie for a place

Team appearances