Kazuma Kobori best Kiwi at JAC in Auckland
- Mar 6
- 3 min read
Chasing his biggest win on home soil, New Zealand’s Kazuma Kobori is one shot off the lead after the opening round of the inaugural $1.425,000 ISPS HANDA Japan-Australasia Championship.
Yoshinori Fujimoto, a two-time winner on the Japan Golf Tour, sits on top of the leaderboard after firing a 6-under-par 66, holing a birdie putt on the 18th at Royal Auckland & Grange Golf Club’s composite course to set a new course record and break out of a four-way tie.
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To kick off the first big professional event in Auckland in 22 years, Kobori, the Kiwi No.1 in the field this week, shot a 5-under-par 67, sitting him alongside Australians James Marchesani and Daniel Gale and Japan’s Aguri Iwasaki and Taichi Nabetani.
Fujimoto finished around seven hours after Kobori and had clearly the best round of the afternoon field as the breeze kicked up.
His only bogey came on the difficult par-4 17th when his approach shot ended in a difficult lie in the greenside rough.
It was just two years ago that Kobori was dominating the Challenger PGA Tour of Australasia, winning three tournaments on the way to claiming the Order of Merit title, igniting his professional career which now has him based on the DP World Tour.
Despite a busy schedule to come, he was eager to play in Auckland and at the New Zealand Open last week at Millbrook where he finished equal 19th.
“It's always good to perform. We had a lot of people out there today, so it's nice to play in front of them and then give them something that they came to watch,” the 24-year-old said.
“Putting on a good performance for them, that's all that matters here.”
That good performance started with the former NZ PGA champion making three birdies in his first five holes with the only bogey on his scorecard coming at the par-4 14th.
He hit 14 of 18 greens in regulation and needed just 27 putts.
“I rolled the ball really well and then my distance control was quite good as well into the greens. Because it's quite firm already, there's not much room for error,” he said.
Sitting alongside the competition to be the inaugural winner of the ISPS HANDA Japan-Australasia Championship is the race for No.1 on the Challenger PGA Tour of Australasia Order of Merit and the rewards that carries.
With big points on offer this week, the battle for top spot could be decided on Sunday, even though two tournaments remain on the 2025/26 schedule later this month.
Thanks to his opening 67, Marchesani, ranked No.3. gained an early advantage on current leader Cam John (72) and second ranked Chris Wood (74).
At last week’s New Zealand Open, all the main contenders for the Order of Merit title, including John, Marchesani and Wood, missed the cut and a golden chance to consolidate their position in the hunt for a coveted place on the DP World Tour. That doesn’t look like being the case in Auckland.
Gale finished off his 67 with three birdies in his last six holes, but his highlight came earlier in the day at the short par-4 third when he holed out for eagle from the greenside bunker.
Iwasaki was bogey free in his 67, saying he rarely had any trouble. Nabetani closed out his 67 even later than the leader at 7.45pm.
Kerry Mountcastle is the next best Kiwi, tied seventh at four-under with Michael Hendry a shot further back.
