Ishikawa leads magnificent trio to historical achievement at Zozo Championship

Ryo Ishikawa spearheaded a historic moment at the Zozo Championship with three Japanese players making the top-10 for the first time, as American Collin Morikawa sealed a six-shot victory with a commanding final round seven-under-par 63.

Ishikawa, a two-time PGA Tour runner-up, delivered a superb 67 at the Accordia Golf Narashino Country Club in Chiba this Sunday, finishing tied for fourth with a four-day total of seven-under 273, seven strokes behind Morikawa.

This stands as the 32-year-old's finest performance on the PGA Tour since his joint runner-up spot at the 2013 Shriners Hospitals for Children Open.

Compatriots Kensei Hirata and Ryo Hisatsune heightened the day's excitement for local fans, both carding matching 66s to end in a four-way tie for sixth, totalling 274.

Since the Zozo Championship's debut in 2019, the 2021 event boasted the highest Japanese representation in the top-10, with Hideki Matsuyama clinching the title and Takumi Kanaya finishing tied for seventh.

In addition to securing sizable prize money from the US$8.5 million event, Ishikawa, Hirata, and Hisatsune were handsomely rewarded for their performances, earning themselves spots in the World Wide Technology Championship in Mexico from November 2-5

"I'm pleased to finish in the top-10. It's been great to play in a PGA event here in Japan. The atmosphere was amazing," said Ishikawa, whose other PGA Tour runner-up finish came at the 2012 Puerto Rico Open.

Ishikawa expressed immense pride in being accompanied by Hirata and Hisatsune, aged 22 and 21 respectively, in the top 10.

He added that their achievement serves as a testament to the strength and quality of the JGTO, which has been producing young world-class talents in recent years.

"I've been playing back on the Japan Tour for about the past five years, and recently I've really noticed the momentum that the players who are in their early 20s have had, which is great," said the 18-time JGTO winner.

"Our Tour is very competitive at the moment, especially amongst the youngsters. So instead of feeling like it's more like an achievement or something, I feel like it's more a reality. It's becoming real as the days go on."

The impressive top-10 finish also rekindled Ishikawa's ambition to pursue a return to the US, where he had previously plied his trade from 2013 to 2017.

"I'm always hoping to get back on the PGA Tour. It's been about five years since I've been back, but I've always been trying to rebuild myself so that I can go back to the PGA. I really feel like it's never too late to achieve that, so I'm always working hard for it," he said.

For Hisatsune, things have been on the upswing since securing his maiden DP World Tour victory at the French Open last month.

It was a significant redemption for Hisatsune, especially after he missed a top-10 finish in last year's tournament due to a bogey on the final hole.

"Last year I actually messed up my last hole and I didn't really have a good feeling about that. But because I've been able to play in this tournament for three years in a row and also the fact that I finished with a birdie, I think it will help me in the long run, so I'm really happy about that," said Hisatsune.

"After my win (in France) and this good finish this week, I do have a lot more confidence. However, there are still a couple more events to go, so I'm just going to focus on each event at a time."

Hirata expressed that he could not have hoped for a better debut, and it has fuelled his aspiration to play on the PGA Tour in the future.

"This was really something that I didn't expect to happen this week," said Hirata, who has won twice on JGTO this year.

"Playing here in Japan this week against some of the best PGA players, I really learned a lot from this actually, like how they play. I realise it's not just about distance. I learned a lot about their short game and putting, and I felt there's a lot of things that I still need to work on."

The day, however, undeniably belonged to Morikawa, who was unstoppable from the outset.

Beginning the day two shots behind, he kept bogeys at bay and notched seven birdies, ultimately clinching his sixth PGA Tour title with flair, finishing six shots ahead of Eric Cole and Beau Hossler.

After ending his two-year drought, Morikawa said: "It feels incredible. Every win's so different, and in every experience, whether it's winning or losing, you learn a lot, but this one just meant the world.

"I mean, obviously having this kind of two-year drought, you know, just struggling at times, not really contending, to do what I did through this entire week, Thursday, Friday, and then how I started my round yesterday with a double bogey, it just - that's the golf I miss playing.

"To see that and to see it again, it's very exciting kind of just to close out this year and head into next year."

Leading final round scores:

266: Collin Morikawa (US) 64-73-66-63;

272: Eric Cole (US) 65-71-66-70, Beau Hossler (US) 68-65-69-70;

273: Robby Shelton (US) 65-72-71-65, Ryo Ishikawa (Jpn) 68-69-69-67;

274: Min Woo Lee (Aus) 69-73-67-65, Kensei Hirata (Jpn) 71-69-68-66, Ryo Hisatsune (Jpn) 69-71-68-66, J.J. Spaun (US) 69-68-69-68;

275: Emiliano Grillo (Arg) 65-71-68-71, Justin Suh (US) 68-66-67-74;

276: Im Sung-jae (Kor) 67-71-70-68, Cam Davis (Aus) 67-70-69-70, Satoshi Kodaira (Jpn) 67-68-69-72.