Isao Aoki
| Isao Aoki | |
|---|---|
| Nation: |
 Japan
|
| Nickname: | Tower |
| Career data | |
| Professional since: | 1971 |
| Current tour: | Champions Tour |
| Tournament wins: | 77 |
| Major wins : | no |
| Awards: | World Golf Hall of Fame (2004) |
Isao Aoki ( Japanese 青木 功 , Aoki Isao ; born August 31, 1942 in Abiko , Chiba Prefecture , Japan ) is one of the most successful Japanese professional golfers . Its nickname is "Tower" because it is 1.83 meters tall by Japanese standards.
He grew up as the son of a farmer and came into contact with golf at the age of 15, in his spare time as a caddy at Abiko Golf Club . When Aoki first saw Arnold Palmer on television, he dreamed of becoming a great golfer and playing on the PGA TOUR . Palmer became his role model and from then on he pursued his goal with tenacity and became a professional golfer immediately after graduating from school .
successes
In the course of his career, Aoki has more than 70 tournament wins, 56 of them in his home country alone. He achieved success in six different tournament series worldwide: PGA TOUR , Champions Tour , PGA European Tour , PGA Tour of Australasia , Japan Golf Tour and Japan Senior Tour . In 1978 he won the then World Championships Match Play prestigious World Match Play Championship in England.
Despite these countless victories, Isao Aoki probably owes his high profile to second place at the 1980 US Open at Baltusrol Golf Club . All four rounds together with Jack Nicklaus , he played his best golf and hit the final round with Nicklaus. Aoki waited patiently for his historic chance and achieved the second-best overall result in the history of the US Open (274 strokes, 6 under par) - Nicklaus, however, achieved the best (272, 8 under). Afterwards Aoki said: I kept saying to myself, no matter how perfect he is, he will make a mistake in four days and 72 holes. But I was wrong, Jack didn't make a single mistake until the end of the tournament.
Trademark
Despite his unorthodox style (with his putter head upright), Aoki was one of the best putters of his time and was praised for this by his famous golf colleagues, such as Jack Nicklaus and Chi Chi Rodriguez . Although he naturally changed putter models several times in the course of his career , Aoki never changed the putting style that had become his trademark.
Senior career
As a senior, Aoki mainly played on the Champions Tour , where he had nine wins between 1992 and 2002. He won seven other senior titles outside the United States, five of them at the Japan Senior Open .
In 2004, Isao Aoki was the only Japanese to be inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame .
Japan Golf Tour wins
- 1973 Chuncihi Crowns, Pepsi Wilson, Sapporo Tokyu Open, KBC Augusta, Japan PGA Championship
- 1974 Tozai Taiko, Kanto Open, Kanto Pro, Sanpo Classic
- 1975 Chunichi Crowns, Kanto Open
- 1976 Tokai Classic
- 1977 Tohoku Classic, Jun Classic
- 1978 Chunichi Crowns, Japan Pro Match Play, Sapporo Tokyu, Kanto Pro, Golf Nippon Series
- 1979 Chunichi Crowns, Japan Pro Match Play, Kanto Open, Golf Nippon Series
- 1980 Chunichi Crowns, Yomiuri Open, KBC Augusta, Kanto Open, Jun Classic
- 1981 Shizuoka Open, Japan Pro Match Play, Japan PGA Championship
- 1982 Japan Pro Match Play, Daikyo Open
- 1983 Sapporo Tokyu Open, Kanto Pro, Japan Open, Golf Nippon Series
- 1986 Sapporo Tokyu Open, Japan PGA Championship, KBC Augusta, Kanto Open
- 1987 Dunlop International Open, All Nippon Airline Open, Japan Open, Golf Nippon Series
- 1989 Tokai Classic, Casio World
- 1990 Mitsubishi Gallent
- 1991 Bridgestone Open
- 1992 Mitsubishi Gallant, Casio World
Other tournament victories
- 1971 Kanto Pro (Japan)
- 1972 Kanto Pro
- 1973 Gold Beck
- 1978 World Match Play Championship (England)
- 1982 Old Sones Invitational
- 1983 European Open ( European Tour ), Hawaiian Open ( PGA TOUR )
- 1987 Fred Meyer Challenge (with Payne Stewart )
- 1989 Coca Cola Golf Classic ( PGA Tour of Australasia )
Champions Tour victories
- 1992 Nationwide Championship
- 1994 Bank One Senior Classic, Brickyard Crossing Championship
- 1995 Bank Of Boston Senior Classic
- 1996 BellSouth Senior, Kroger Senior Classic
- 1997 Emerald Coast Classic
- 1998 BellSouth Senior Classic at Opryland
- 2002 The Instinet Classic
Japan Senior PGA Tour victories
- 1994 Japan Senior Open
- 1995 American Express Grand Slam, Japan Senior Open
- 1996 Japan Senior Open
- 1997 Japan Senior Open
- 2000 N. Cup Senior Open
- 2002 N. Cup Senior Open
- 2007 Japan Senior Open
Web links
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Aoki, Isao |
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES | 青木 功 (Japanese) |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | Japanese golfer |
| DATE OF BIRTH | August 31, 1942 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | Abiko (Chiba) , Chiba Prefecture , Japan |