Ai Miyazato
Encyclopedia
is a Japanese professional golfer
Professional golfer
In golf the distinction between amateurs and professionals is rigorously maintained. An amateur who breaches the rules of amateur status may lose his or her amateur status. A golfer who has lost his or her amateur status may not play in amateur competitions until amateur status has been reinstated;...

 who currently competes on the U.S.-based LPGA Tour
LPGA
The LPGA, in full the Ladies Professional Golf Association, is an American organization for female professional golfers. The organization, whose headquarters is in Daytona Beach, Florida, is best known for running the LPGA Tour, a series of weekly golf tournaments for elite female golfers from...

 and the Japan LPGA Tour (JLPGA)
LPGA of Japan Tour
The Japan LPGA Tour is a professional golf tour for women organised by the Ladies Professional Golfers' Association of Japan. It is the second richest women's golf tour in the world. The U.S.-based LPGA Tour is the most important women's tour, but the prize money gap has closed markedly since the...

. She was the top-ranked golfer in the Women's World Golf Rankings
Women's World Golf Rankings
The Women's World Golf Rankings, also known for sponsorship reasons as the Rolex Rankings, were introduced in February 2006. They are sanctioned by the five main women's golf tours and the organisations behind them: Ladies Professional Golf Association , Ladies European Tour, Ladies Professional...

 for three periods of time in 2010.

Early life and amateur career

Miyazato was born in Higashi
Higashi, Okinawa
is a village located in Kunigami District, Okinawa, Japan.As of 2003, the village has an estimated population of 1,876 and a population density of 22.94 persons per km². The total area is 81.79 km².- External links :*...

, Okinawa Prefecture
Okinawa Prefecture
is one of Japan's southern prefectures. It consists of hundreds of the Ryukyu Islands in a chain over long, which extends southwest from Kyūshū to Taiwan. Okinawa's capital, Naha, is located in the southern part of Okinawa Island...

, Japan. As an amateur in 2003, she won a professional event on the Japan LPGA Tour
LPGA of Japan Tour
The Japan LPGA Tour is a professional golf tour for women organised by the Ladies Professional Golfers' Association of Japan. It is the second richest women's golf tour in the world. The U.S.-based LPGA Tour is the most important women's tour, but the prize money gap has closed markedly since the...

 – the Dunlop Ladies Open in Miyagi Prefecture
Miyagi Prefecture
is a prefecture of Japan in the Tōhoku Region on Honshu island. The capital is Sendai.- History :Miyagi Prefecture was formerly part of the province of Mutsu. Mutsu Province, on northern Honshu, was one of the last provinces to be formed as land was taken from the indigenous Emishi, and became the...

, where she was attending high school at the time.

Professional career

In her 2004 rookie season on the JLPGA Tour she won five tournaments. In February 2005, she represented Japan along with Rui Kitada
Rui Kitada
Rui Kitada is a Japanese professional golfer on the LPGA of Japan Tour.Kitada has won six times on the LPGA of Japan Tour between 2004 and 2010.In February 2005, she teamed with Ai Miyazato to win the inaugural Women's World Cup of Golf in South Africa....

 winning the inaugural Women's World Cup of Golf
Women's World Cup of Golf
The Women's World Cup of Golf was a professional golf tournament contested by teams of two female golfers representing their respective countries....

. In 2005, she won six events on the JLPGA tour, and was the #2 ranked player on the JLPGA Tour behind Yuri Fudoh
Yuri Fudoh
is a Japanese golfer. She was the leading money winner on the JLPGA Tour six times in a row from 2000 to 2005. She became the first player on the JLPGA Tour to earn in excess of 100 million yen, a feat she accomplished in 2000, and achieved again in 2003, 2004 and 2005.In 2003, Fudoh became the...

.

In winning the Japan Open Championship at age 20 in 2005, Miyazato became the youngest player on the JLPGA Tour to win a major. Furthering the notion that Miyazato has revived the JLPGA Tour after the retirement of Ayako Okamoto
Ayako Okamoto
is a Japanese professional golfer. She won 62 tournaments internationally, including 17 on the American LPGA Tour. She is a member of the World Golf Hall of Fame.-Early career:...

, over 32,000 people, the largest gallery ever to attend a JLPGA event, witnessed the final day of that tournament.

She dominated the 2005 U.S. LPGA Q-School
Qualifying school
In professional golf the term qualifying school is used for the annual qualifying tournaments for leading golf tours such as the U.S. based PGA and LPGA Tours and the European Tour. A fixed number of players in the event win membership of the tour for the following season, otherwise known as a...

 and secured her tour card, enabling her to compete in the 2006 season. She finished under par for four of the five qualifying rounds, and finished 12 strokes ahead of the closest competitor, setting a record for the largest margin of victory. Back in Japan, on 15 December, she played the opening rounds of the Okinawa Open, becoming the first Japanese woman to compete in a domestic men's professional event, although she failed to make the cut for the final rounds.

Miyazato earned her first LPGA Tour win at the 2009 Evian Masters
Evian Masters
The Evian Masters is a women's professional golf tournament played at the Evian Masters Golf Club in Évian-les-Bains, France each July.Founded in 1994 on the Ladies European Tour, it is one of two major championships on the LET. Not a major on the LPGA Tour, it became an LPGA co-sanctioned event in...

, shooting 14-under par 274 to tie Sophie Gustafson
Sophie Gustafson
Sophie Gustafson is a Swedish professional golfer. She is a member of U.S. based LPGA Tour and a life member of the Ladies European Tour. She has five LPGA and 21 international wins in her career...

 who she then beat on the first playoff hole.

In 2010, she won four of the first nine official tournaments on the LPGA Tour and on 21 June rose to number 1 in the Women's World Golf Rankings
Women's World Golf Rankings
The Women's World Golf Rankings, also known for sponsorship reasons as the Rolex Rankings, were introduced in February 2006. They are sanctioned by the five main women's golf tours and the organisations behind them: Ladies Professional Golf Association , Ladies European Tour, Ladies Professional...

. She held the spot for only one week and was replaced by Cristie Kerr
Cristie Kerr
Cristie Kerr is an American professional golfer who plays on the U.S.-based LPGA Tour. She has 14 wins on the LPGA Tour, including two major championships, and over $13 million in career earnings...

 who held the spot for three weeks, before Miyazato regained the spot again on 19 July, by a margin of 0.0006 average points.

On 22 August 2010, Miyazato won for the fifth time in 2010 at the Safeway Classic
Safeway Classic
The Safeway Classic is an annual golf tournament for professional female golfers on the LPGA Tour. Founded in 1972, the 54-hole event takes place every year in the Portland, Oregon area and is the oldest continuous event on the LPGA Tour. Tournament Golf Foundation has managed the tournament since...

 with a two stroke victory over Cristie Kerr and Na Yeon Choi
Na Yeon Choi
Na Yeon Choi is a South Korean female professional golfer playing on the U.S.-based LPGA Tour.-Amateur career:At age 17 in 2004, Choi won the ADT CAPS Invitational on the LPGA of Korea Tour , beating future Hall-of-Famer Se Ri Pak by four strokes. Choi turned professional shortly thereafter, in...

. She regained the number 1 spot in the World Rankings, which had been briefly retaken by Kerr. She gave up the top spot again to Kerr on 25 October.

She has endorsements deals with Suntory
Suntory
is a Japanese brewing and distilling company group. Established in 1899, it is one of the oldest companies in the distribution of alcoholic beverages in Japan. Its business has expanded to other fields, and the company now offers everything from soft drinks to sandwich chains...

, Bridgestone Corporation, Japan Airlines
Japan Airlines
is an airline headquartered in Shinagawa, Tokyo, Japan. It is the flag carrier of Japan and its main hubs are Tokyo's Narita International Airport and Tokyo International Airport , as well as Nagoya's Chūbu Centrair International Airport and Osaka's Kansai International Airport...

, Oakley, Honda
Honda
is a Japanese public multinational corporation primarily known as a manufacturer of automobiles and motorcycles.Honda has been the world's largest motorcycle manufacturer since 1959, as well as the world's largest manufacturer of internal combustion engines measured by volume, producing more than...

, Hisamitsu, Mitsubishi Electric
Mitsubishi Electric
is a multinational electronics and information technology company headquartered in Tokyo, Japan. It is one of the core companies of the Mitsubishi Group....

 and NTT Docomo
NTT DoCoMo
is the predominant mobile phone operator in Japan. The name is officially an abbreviation of the phrase, "do communications over the mobile network", and is also from a compound word dokomo, meaning "everywhere" in Japanese. Docomo provides phone, video phone , i-mode , and mail services...

.

Her older brothers, Kiyoshi Miyazato
Kiyoshi Miyazato
Kiyoshi Miyazato is a Japanese professional golfer.Miyazato plays on the Japan Golf Tour, where he has won once.His sister, Ai Miyazato, and brother Yūsaku Miyazato are also professional golfers.-External links:...

 and Yūsaku Miyazato
Yusaku Miyazato
is a professional golfer from Okinawa, Japan. On 25 August 2006 he became the first modern-era golfer to make two hole in one shots in the same round of a PGA Tour event, at the Reno-Tahoe Open in Nevada.Miyazato was born in Higashi, Okinawa Prefecture, Japan...

 are also professional golfers. She is not related to fellow Japanese LPGA Tour player Mika Miyazato
Mika Miyazato
Mika Miyazato is a Japanese professional golfer who plays on the Ladies Professional Golf Association Tour.As an amateur, Miyazato won the 2004 Japan Amateur Women's Championship at the age of 14, and was the youngest player to win the event. In the Asian Games, she won silver medals in the...

.

LPGA Tour (7)

No. Date Tournament Winning score To par Margin of
victory
Runner(s)-up Winner's
share ($
United States dollar
The United States dollar , also referred to as the American dollar, is the official currency of the United States of America. It is divided into 100 smaller units called cents or pennies....

)
1 26 Jul 2009
2009 LPGA Tour
The 2009 LPGA Tour was a series of weekly golf tournaments for elite female golfers from around the world that took place from February through November 2009. The tournaments were sanctioned by the United States based Ladies Professional Golf Association ....

Evian Masters
Evian Masters
The Evian Masters is a women's professional golf tournament played at the Evian Masters Golf Club in Évian-les-Bains, France each July.Founded in 1994 on the Ladies European Tour, it is one of two major championships on the LET. Not a major on the LPGA Tour, it became an LPGA co-sanctioned event in...

69–66–70–69=274 -14 Playoff   Sophie Gustafson
Sophie Gustafson
Sophie Gustafson is a Swedish professional golfer. She is a member of U.S. based LPGA Tour and a life member of the Ladies European Tour. She has five LPGA and 21 international wins in her career...

487,500
2 21 Feb 2010
2010 LPGA Tour
The 2010 LPGA Tour was a series of weekly golf tournaments for elite female golfers from around the world that began in Thailand on February 13, 2010 and ended in Florida on December 5, 2010...

Honda PTT LPGA Thailand 67–67–70–63=267 -21 1 stroke   Suzann Pettersen
Suzann Pettersen
Suzann Pettersen is a Norwegian professional golfer. She plays mainly on the U.S.-based LPGA Tour, and is also a member of the Ladies European Tour. Her career best world ranking is second. She has held that position at several times, most recently beginning 22 August 2011.-Amateur...

195,000
3 28 Feb 2010
2010 LPGA Tour
The 2010 LPGA Tour was a series of weekly golf tournaments for elite female golfers from around the world that began in Thailand on February 13, 2010 and ended in Florida on December 5, 2010...

HSBC Women's Champions
HSBC Women's Champions
The HSBC Women's Champions is a golf tournament for professional female golfers that is part of the LPGA Tour. It was played for the first time in 2008 at the Tanah Merah Country Club in Singapore....

69–71–69–69=278 -10 2 strokes   Cristie Kerr
Cristie Kerr
Cristie Kerr is an American professional golfer who plays on the U.S.-based LPGA Tour. She has 14 wins on the LPGA Tour, including two major championships, and over $13 million in career earnings...

195,000
4 2 May 2010
2010 LPGA Tour
The 2010 LPGA Tour was a series of weekly golf tournaments for elite female golfers from around the world that began in Thailand on February 13, 2010 and ended in Florida on December 5, 2010...

Tres Marias Championship 63–72–71–67=273 -19 1 stroke   Stacy Lewis
Stacy Lewis
Stacy Lewis is an American professional golfer on the U.S.-based LPGA Tour.-Early years:Born in Ohio, Lewis grew up in Texas at The Woodlands outside of Houston, and graduated from The Woodlands High School in 2003...

195,000
5 20 Jun 2010
2010 LPGA Tour
The 2010 LPGA Tour was a series of weekly golf tournaments for elite female golfers from around the world that began in Thailand on February 13, 2010 and ended in Florida on December 5, 2010...

ShopRite LPGA Classic
ShopRite LPGA Classic
The ShopRite LPGA Classic is a women's professional golf tournament on the LPGA Tour, held near Atlantic City, New Jersey. It took place annually from 1986 through 2006 and returned to the tour schedule in 2010 at a new venue, the Bay Course at the Dolce Seaview Resort, with a prize fund of $1.5...

66–67–64=197 -16 2 strokes   M. J. Hur 225,000
6 22 Aug 2010
2010 LPGA Tour
The 2010 LPGA Tour was a series of weekly golf tournaments for elite female golfers from around the world that began in Thailand on February 13, 2010 and ended in Florida on December 5, 2010...

Safeway Classic
Safeway Classic
The Safeway Classic is an annual golf tournament for professional female golfers on the LPGA Tour. Founded in 1972, the 54-hole event takes place every year in the Portland, Oregon area and is the oldest continuous event on the LPGA Tour. Tournament Golf Foundation has managed the tournament since...

66–67–72=205 -11 2 strokes   Na Yeon Choi
Na Yeon Choi
Na Yeon Choi is a South Korean female professional golfer playing on the U.S.-based LPGA Tour.-Amateur career:At age 17 in 2004, Choi won the ADT CAPS Invitational on the LPGA of Korea Tour , beating future Hall-of-Famer Se Ri Pak by four strokes. Choi turned professional shortly thereafter, in...

 
  Cristie Kerr
Cristie Kerr
Cristie Kerr is an American professional golfer who plays on the U.S.-based LPGA Tour. She has 14 wins on the LPGA Tour, including two major championships, and over $13 million in career earnings...

225,000
7 24 Jul 2011
2011 LPGA Tour
The 2011 LPGA Tour was a series of weekly golf tournaments for elite female golfers from around the world that began in Thailand on February 17, 2011 and had its last official event end on November 20, 2011 in Florida...

Evian Masters
Evian Masters
The Evian Masters is a women's professional golf tournament played at the Evian Masters Golf Club in Évian-les-Bains, France each July.Founded in 1994 on the Ladies European Tour, it is one of two major championships on the LET. Not a major on the LPGA Tour, it became an LPGA co-sanctioned event in...

68-68-67-70=273 -15 2 strokes   Stacy Lewis
Stacy Lewis
Stacy Lewis is an American professional golfer on the U.S.-based LPGA Tour.-Early years:Born in Ohio, Lewis grew up in Texas at The Woodlands outside of Houston, and graduated from The Woodlands High School in 2003...

487,500

JLPGA Tour (15)

No. Date Tournament Winning score Margin of
victory
Runner(s)-up
1 28 Sep 2003 Miyagi TV Cup Dunlop Ladies Open (as an amateur) -5 (70–70–71=211) 1 stroke   Mari Katayama 
  Hiroko Yamaguchi
2 7 Mar 2004 Daikin Orchid Ladies -10 (70–66–70=206) 3 strokes   Kaori Higo
3 13 Jun 2004 Suntory Ladies Open
Suntory Ladies Open
The Suntory Ladies Open is an annual golf tournament on the LPGA of Japan Tour. It is first played in 1990. The event is held in Hyogo, currently at the Rokko International Golf Club...

-11 (69–70–70–68=277) 6 strokes   Hiroko Yamaguchi 
  Toshimi Kimura
4 20 Jun 2004 APiTA Circle K Sunkus Ladies -6 (69–69–72=210) 1 stroke   Yuri Fudoh
Yuri Fudoh
is a Japanese golfer. She was the leading money winner on the JLPGA Tour six times in a row from 2000 to 2005. She became the first player on the JLPGA Tour to earn in excess of 100 million yen, a feat she accomplished in 2000, and achieved again in 2003, 2004 and 2005.In 2003, Fudoh became the...

5 24 Oct 2004 Masters GC Ladies
Masters GC Ladies
Masters GC Ladies is an annual golf tournament for professional female golfers on LPGA of Japan Tour.. It is usually played in October and in recent years at the Masters Golf Club, Miki, Hyogo...

-11 (69–68–68=205) 1 stroke   Miho Koga
6 21 Nov 2004 Daio Paper Elleair Ladies Open -14 (66–67–69=202) 3 strokes   Chieko Amanuma 
  Rui Kitada
Rui Kitada
Rui Kitada is a Japanese professional golfer on the LPGA of Japan Tour.Kitada has won six times on the LPGA of Japan Tour between 2004 and 2010.In February 2005, she teamed with Ai Miyazato to win the inaugural Women's World Cup of Golf in South Africa....

7 15 May 2005 Vernal Ladies -13 (69–64–70=203) 8 strokes   Akiko Fukushima
Akiko Fukushima
Akiko Fukushima is a Japanese professional golfer who played on the LPGA Tour.Fukushima won 24 times on the LPGA of Japan Tour.Fukushima won twice on the LPGA Tour both in 1999.-LPGA Tour wins :-LPGA of Japan Tour wins :...

8 22 May 2005 Chukyo TV Bridgestone Ladies Open -7 (65–74–70=209) Playoff   Nikki Campbell
Nikki Campbell
Nicola Jane "Nikki" Campbell is an Australian female golfer.Campbell was born in Mississauga, Ontario, Canada. She moved with her family to Australia in 1983. At the age of 12 she began playing golf at the Federal Golf Club in Canberra. She turned pro in 2002, and has played mostly on the LPGA of...

9 21 Aug 2005 New Catapillar Mitsubishi Ladies -10 (66–75–68=209) 3 strokes   Mi-Jeong Jeon 
  Hiromi Mogi
10 2 Oct 2005 Japan Women's Open Golf Championship
Japan Women's Open Golf Championship
The is Japan's national women's open golf championship. From 2006 it is one of the two richest tournaments on the LPGA of Japan Tour, with a prize fund of 140 million Yen.Tournament names through the years:*1968-1970: TBS Women's Open...

-5 (69–69–72–73) 5 strokes   Akiko Fukushima
Akiko Fukushima
Akiko Fukushima is a Japanese professional golfer who played on the LPGA Tour.Fukushima won 24 times on the LPGA of Japan Tour.Fukushima won twice on the LPGA Tour both in 1999.-LPGA Tour wins :-LPGA of Japan Tour wins :...

11 30 Oct 2005 Hisako Higuchi IDC Otsuka Kagu Ladies -14 (67–68–67=202) 7 strokes   Julie Lu 
  Nikki Campbell
Nikki Campbell
Nicola Jane "Nikki" Campbell is an Australian female golfer.Campbell was born in Mississauga, Ontario, Canada. She moved with her family to Australia in 1983. At the age of 12 she began playing golf at the Federal Golf Club in Canberra. She turned pro in 2002, and has played mostly on the LPGA of...

 
  Kaori Higo 
  Shinobu Moromizato
12 20 Nov 2005 Daio Paper Elleair Ladies Open -12 (69–70–65=204) 5 strokes   Shiho Oyama 
  Woo-Soon Ko
Woo-Soon Ko
Woo-Soon Ko is a South Korean professional golfer.Ko won twice on the LPGA Tour in 1994 and 1995, both as a non-member.-LPGA Tour wins :*1994 Toray Japan Queens Cup...

 
  Kasumi Fujii
13 10 Sep 2006 JLPGA Championship Konica Minolta Cup
Japan LPGA Championship
, is the first-longest running tournament in the history of the Japan Ladies Professional Golf Association. surpassed only by Japan Women's Open...

-6 (70–68–74–70) 3 strokes   Hyun-Ju Shin
14 24 Sep 2006 Miyagi TV Cup Dunlop Ladies Open -2 (70–73–71=214) 3 strokes   Shiho Oyama
15 11 Oct 2009 Sankyo Ladies Open -4 (74–70–68=212) 1 stroke   Mayu Hattori 
  Mi-Jeong Jeon


Tournament in bold denotes major championships in JLPGA Tour.

Results in LPGA majors

Tournament 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011
Kraft Nabisco Championship
Kraft Nabisco Championship
The Kraft Nabisco Championship is one of the four major championships on the LPGA Tour. It was founded in 1972 by Dinah Shore and has been classified as a major since 1983...

DNP T44 T29 T15 T31 69 CUT T33
LPGA Championship
LPGA Championship
The LPGA Championship, currently known for sponsorship reasons as the Wegmans LPGA Championship, is the second-longest running tournament in the history of the Ladies Professional Golf Association surpassed only by the U.S. Women's Open. It is one of four majors on the LPGA tour...

DNP DNP T3 CUT CUT DNP T3 CUT
U.S. Women's Open DNP CUT T28 T10 T27 T6 T31 T6
Women's British Open
Women's British Open
The Women's British Open is a leading event in women's professional golf and the only tournament which is classified as a major championship by both the Ladies European Tour and the LPGA Tour. Since 2007, it has been called the Ricoh Women's British Open, for sponsorship reasons...

CUT T11 9 T58 5 T3 T9 CUT


DNP = did not play

CUT = missed the half-way cut

"T" = tied

Green background for a win. Yellow background for a top-10 finish.

LPGA Tour career summary

Year Tournaments
played
Cuts
made
Wins 2nds 3rds Top 10s Best
finish
Earnings
($
United States dollar
The United States dollar , also referred to as the American dollar, is the official currency of the United States of America. It is divided into 100 smaller units called cents or pennies....

)
Money
list rank
Scoring
average
Scoring
rank
2004
2004 LPGA Tour
The 2004 LPGA Tour was a series of weekly golf tournaments for elite female golfers from around the world which took place from March through December 2004. The tournaments were sanctioned by the United States based Ladies Professional Golf Association . This was the 55th season since the LPGA Tour...

2 1 0 1 0 1 T2 69,608 n/a 70.20 n/a
2005
2005 LPGA Tour
The 2005 LPGA Tour was a series of weekly golf tournaments for elite female golfers from around the world which took place from February through December 2005. The tournaments were sanctioned by the United States based Ladies Professional Golf Association...

6 5 0 0 2 1 T10 102,663 n/a 72.41 n/a
2006
2006 LPGA Tour
The 2006 LPGA Tour was a series of weekly golf tournaments for elite female golfers from around the world which took place from February through December 2006. The tournaments were sanctioned by the United States based Ladies Professional Golf Association...

21 19 0 0 1 7 T3 532,053 22 71.22 13
2007
2007 LPGA Tour
The 2007 LPGA Tour was a series of weekly golf tournaments for elite female golfers from around the world that took place from February through December 2007. The tournaments were sanctioned by the United States based Ladies Professional Golf Association...

25 19 0 1 2 7 2 788,477 17 73.01 56
2008
2008 LPGA Tour
The 2008 LPGA Tour was a series of weekly golf tournaments for elite female golfers from around the world that took place from February through December 2008. The tournaments were sanctioned by the United States based Ladies Professional Golf Association...

23 17 0 0 0 3 T4 410,833 46 72.19 48
2009
2009 LPGA Tour
The 2009 LPGA Tour was a series of weekly golf tournaments for elite female golfers from around the world that took place from February through November 2009. The tournaments were sanctioned by the United States based Ladies Professional Golf Association ....

22 22 1 2 1 13 1 1,517,149 3 70.33 4
2010
2010 LPGA Tour
The 2010 LPGA Tour was a series of weekly golf tournaments for elite female golfers from around the world that began in Thailand on February 13, 2010 and ended in Florida on December 5, 2010...

21 18 5 0 1 9 1 1,457,384 6 70.65 7
2011
2011 LPGA Tour
The 2011 LPGA Tour was a series of weekly golf tournaments for elite female golfers from around the world that began in Thailand on February 17, 2011 and had its last official event end on November 20, 2011 in Florida...

19 17 1 0 1 6 1 1,007,633 8 71.63 18
  • official as of 21 November 2011

JLPGA prize money

Year Earnings (¥
Japanese yen
The is the official currency of Japan. It is the third most traded currency in the foreign exchange market after the United States dollar and the euro. It is also widely used as a reserve currency after the U.S. dollar, the euro and the pound sterling...

)
Rank
2003 1,060,800 116
2004 122,972,349 2
2005 114,377,871 2
2006 58,604,501 10
2007 4,318,305 89
2008 27,892,338 32
2009 46,430,116 14
2010 16,720,000 47
Career 392,376,280 33

External links

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