Kenichi Kuboya
| Kenichi Kuboya 久保谷 健一 | |
|---|---|
| Personal information | |
| Born |
11 March 1972 Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan |
| Height | 1.74 m (5 ft 9 in) |
| Weight | 70 kg (154 lb; 11 st 0 lb) |
| Nationality |
 Japan |
| Career | |
| College | Meiji University |
| Turned professional | 1995 |
| Current tour(s) | Japan Golf Tour |
| Former tour(s) | PGA Tour |
| Professional wins | 7 |
| Number of wins by tour | |
| Japan Golf Tour | 7 |
| Best results in major championships | |
| Masters Tournament | DNP |
| U.S. Open | T68: 2011 |
| The Open Championship | T27: 2009 |
| PGA Championship | DNP |
Kenichi Kuboya (Japanese: 久保谷 健一, born 11 March 1972) is a Japanese professional golfer.
Kuboya won four events on the Japan Golf Tour between 1997 and 2002, picking up two wins in each of those seasons.
Both of Kuboya's wins on the Japan Golf Tour in 2002 came in playoffs against seasoned campaigners. He beat Shingo Katayama in extra holes at the Munsingwear Open KSB Cup and another win against former Open champion Todd Hamilton at the Japan PGA Championship. This remains the biggest win of his career.
Kuboya had a brief stint on the PGA Tour where he played a full season in 2003. His best finish of the year was a T13 at the 84 Lumber Classic of Pennsylvania and he was not able to keep his card. He would go back to play on the Japan Golf Tour in 2004, where he currently plays.
Kuboya played in his first major championship in 2002 at The Open Championship, where he made the cut, but did not contend on the weekend. His next major was the 2009 Open Championship at Turnberry in Scotland. He finished his first round birdie, birdie, eagle, birdie to finish in a tie for second. He would finish the tournament tied for 27th.
Kuboya won his fifth Japan Golf Tour title at the 2011 Canon Open, nine years after his last win and subsequently won the 2012 Japan Open and the 2017 Panasonic Open.
Professional wins (7)
Japan Golf Tour wins (7)
| No. | Date | Tournament | Winning score | Margin of victory |
Runner(s)-up |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 11 May 1997 | Fujisankei Classic | –5 (68-69-73-69=279) | 1 stroke | Yoshinori Kaneko, Masashi Ozaki |
| 2 | 14 Dec 1997 | Daikyo Open | –21 (66-64-68-65=263) | 1 stroke | Katsunori Kuwabara,  Brian Watts |
| 3 | 19 May 2002 | Japan PGA Championship | –9 (74-70-68-67=279) | Playoff | Shingo Katayama |
| 4 | 26 May 2002 | Munsingwear Open KSB Cup | –11 (66-70-68-69=273) | Playoff | Yoshimitsu Fukuzawa, Todd Hamilton |
| 5 | 9 Oct 2011 | Canon Open | –14 (68-67-70-69=274) | 5 strokes |  Chawalit Plaphol,  Brad Kennedy, Mamo Osanai |
| 6 | 14 Oct 2012 | Japan Open | +8 (74-73-75-70=292) | 1 stroke |  Juvic Pagunsan |
| 7 | 23 Apr 2017 | Panasonic Open | –11 (69-71-69-64=273) | Playoff | Katsumasa Miyamoto |
Results in major championships
| Tournament | 2002 | 2003 | 2004 | 2005 | 2006 | 2007 | 2008 | 2009 | 2010 | 2011 | 2012 | 2013 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Masters Tournament | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP |
| U.S. Open | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | T68 | DNP | DNP |
| The Open Championship | T59 | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | T27 | DNP | DNP | DNP | CUT |
| PGA Championship | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP |
DNP = Did not play
CUT = missed the half-way cut
"T" = tied
See also
External links
- Kenichi Kuboya at the Japan Golf Tour official site
- Kenichi Kuboya at the PGA Tour official site
- Kenichi Kuboya at the Official World Golf Ranking official site