(Photo credit score: The R&A)
Naoyuki Kataoka, ranked Five hundredth within the Official World Golf Ranking final week, scored invitations to the 2026 Masters and The Open Championship by successful The Japan Open on Sunday.
Kataoka sunk a par putt on the primary playoff gap to outlast Satoshi Hara for the victory, which vaulted him 145 spots to No. 355. More importantly, it took benefit of a change within the qualifying guidelines for the Masters, which not fingers out invites for winners of fall PGA Tour occasions and as a substitute awards them to winners of sure nationwide open championships.
One of them is The Japan Open, whose winner additionally earns an invitation to The Open by the R&A through the Open Qualifying Series. The 2026 Open Championship might be held at Royal Birkdale.
The 27-year-old Kataoka shot a 3-under-par 277 to high the 120-player subject at Nikko Country Club and can play within the Masters and The Open for the primary time. His career-high world rating was 164th again in 2021 following a tie for second on the Dunlop Phoenix on the Japanese tour.
‘It’s actually a dream come true for me,’ Kataoka stated, through JT. ‘I’m actually glad to have the ability to play within the Masters and The Open.
‘I’ll work as onerous as I can, put together by April, and do my finest to have the ability to compete. I felt a extremely robust sense of accomplishment as I lastly gained once more after enduring so many close to misses throughout these barren 4 years (because the 2021 Japan Players Championship).’
Other occasions that award invitations to the Masters and The Open are the Australian Open, the Hong Kong Open and the South African Open.–Field Level Media