Shigeki Maruyama
| Shigeki Maruyama | |
|---|---|
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| Personnel | |
| Nation: |
 Japan
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| Nickname: | Smiling assassin |
| Career data | |
| Professional since: | 1992 |
| Current tour: | Japan Golf Tour , PGA TOUR |
| Tournament wins: | 13 |
Shigeki Maruyama ( Japanese 丸山 茂樹 , Maruyama Shigeki ; born September 12, 1969 in Ichikawa , Chiba Prefecture ) is a Japanese professional golfer . He is known for his ubiquitous smile, which gave him his nickname "Smiling Assassin".
Maruyama graduated from Nihon University and became a professional golfer in 1992 . Maruyama first began playing the domestic Japan Golf Tour and quickly became one of the leading golfers in this tournament series. Two excellent placements in World Golf Championships events in 1999 contributed significantly to qualifying for the North American PGA TOUR and since the 2000 season Maruyama has played mainly there. He has won three victories so far: 2001 at the Greater Milwaukee Open , the following year at the Verizon Byron Nelson Classic and again a year later at the Chrysler Classic of Greensboro .
He was a member of the international team in the Presidents Cup in 1998 and 2000. Especially his performance in the 1998 event brought Maruyama international reputation, as he had a flawless match record of 5 wins from 5 encounters, an extremely rare feat.
He also holds a very special record: a round of 58 , scored on June 5, 2000 at the Woodmont Country Club in Rockville , Maryland during a qualifier for the US Open 2000. This is an all-time high for a professional golf tournament.
All of this and his everlasting, signature smile made Shigeki Maruyama one of the audience favorites on the PGA Tour.
Japan Golf Tour wins
- 1993 Pepsi Ubekousan
- 1995 Bridgestone Open
- 1996 Bridgestone Open
- 1997 PGA Championship of Japan, Pocari Sweat Yomiuri Open, PGA Match Play Promise Cup, Golf Nippon Hitachi Cup
- 1998 PGA Philanthropy Open
- 1999 Bridgestone Open
- 2009 Golf Nippon Series JT Cup
PGA Tour victories
- 2001 Greater Milwaukee Open (in playoff against Charles Howell III )
- 2002 Verizon Byron Nelson Classic (before Ben Crane and Tiger Woods )
- 2003 Chrysler Classic of Greensboro (before Brad Faxon )
Web links
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Maruyama, Shigeki |
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES | 丸山 茂樹 (Japanese) |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | Japanese professional golfer |
| DATE OF BIRTH | September 12, 1969 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | Ichikawa , Chiba Prefecture , Japan |