Hyogo, Japan: Former Bonallack Trophy strongman Yuta Sugiura has given himself a timely morale-booster by securing a third Japan Golf Tour Organisation (JGTO) title.
Sugiura was declared the winner of the ACN Championship Golf Tournament after inclement weather forced officials to cancel the final round at Miki Golf Club.
Sugiura is set to compete at the upcoming US Tour Qualifying School in Arizona. He said: “I’ve wanted to test myself overseas since last year. I didn’t do as well as I hoped in the Money Ranking this season, so I decided to enter from the first stage instead of waiting. This win gives me really good momentum heading into that challenge.”
At Miki Golf Club, the 24-year-old posted rounds of 67, 65 and 68 for a three-day total of 13-under-par 200, which gave him a three-shot cushion over his nearest challengers – Shugo Imahira, Naoyuki Kataoka, Takashi Ogiso, Shu Fukuzumi and Tatsunori Shogenji – when play was called off.
The tournament was officially reduced to 54 holes, handing Sugiura his first victory of the 2025 season and third in all.
Sugiura, who had the distinction of scoring the winning point for the Asia-Pacific Golf Confederation team against their European Golf Association counterparts in the 2023 edition of the Ryder Cup-style Bonallack Trophy in Spain, admitted he hadn’t expected the final round to be cancelled.
Had it have gone ahead, Sugiura said he would have adopted a conservative approach.
“Since I had a three-shot lead, I wasn’t planning to take any unnecessary risks,” he said. “But on this course, you can’t win without improving your score, so my main focus was to avoid bogeys. My putting was working well, so I Just wanted to keep that mindset and build one hole at a time.”
Reflecting on the week, Sugiura credited his putting as the standout part of his game. He said: “My putting, definitely. Because my putting was good, I was able to play safe golf without having to attack the pins too aggressively.”
The key, he revealed, was a small but significant equipment adjustment made during his practice rounds.
“I adjusted the weight on my putter,” Sugiura explained. “I had some tape on it before, but I removed the back part of the head and reattached it properly, and it felt much better. I did that during the practice round this week, and when I tried it, it worked well, so I decided to keep using it in the tournament, and it turned out great.”
Having found renewed confidence with his putting stroke, Sugiura is hopeful of carrying his form into the closing stretch of the season and beyond. “Putting is extremely important if you want to win or finish near the top,” he said. “My putting stroke feels better now, and my putter is performing well, so that’s been my biggest focus lately.”
Also looking for a strong finish to the year is Takumi Kobayashi.
The 21-year-old amateur stunned his professional rivals at Miki Golf Club by shooting an opening seven-under 64 to top the leaderboard on day one.
A round of 73 on day two ensured he was comfortably within the cut line and a third-round 72 meant he ended in a share of 24th place on six-under 209.