| Koichi Ono | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Personal information | |||
| Born | (1919-05-19)19 May 1919 Dalian,Manchuria | ||
| Died | 6 November 2000(2000-11-06) (aged 81) | ||
| Sporting nationality |  Japan | ||
| Career | |||
| Status | Professional | ||
| Professional wins | 12 | ||
| Best results in major championships | |||
| Masters Tournament | CUT: 1958, 1963 | ||
| PGA Championship | DNP | ||
| U.S. Open | DNP | ||
| The Open Championship | DNP | ||
| Achievements and awards | |||
| |||
Koichi Ono (小野 光一,Ono Kōichi, 19 May 1919 – 6 November 2000[1]), bornSon Shi-Kin inDalian,Manchuria (nowChina), was a Japaneseprofessional golfer. He was one of the leading golfers on the Japanese circuit during the 1950s, winning theJapan Open Golf Championship three times and representing Japan on four occasions in theCanada Cup. He was inducted into the Japan Professional Golf Hall of Fame in 2012.
Ono won many tournaments in Japan including theJapan Open Golf Championship, the nation's most prestigious tournament, in 1951, 1953 and 1955, and theKanto Pro Championship five times. He also won theJapan PGA Championship in 1955. Around this time in his career he became naturalized and changed his name to Koichi Ono.
Ono is best known for his performance in the1957 Canada Cup. Ono and his playing partnerTorakichi Nakamura were hosts at the event, held atKasumigaseki Country Club in Japan. The Canada Cup, a precursor to theWorld Cup, featured an elite field that includedSam Snead,Gary Player, andPeter Thomson.[2] Nakamura and Ono won the event, and won easily, defeating AmericansJimmy Demaret and Snead by nine shots.[3] The American sportswriterHerbert Warren Wind, writing inSports Illustrated, compared it toFrancis Ouimet's famous upset victory at the1913 U.S. Open.[2] The event was widely televised in Japan and helped spur a golfing boom in the country.[4]
This good play helped Ono and Nakamura receive special foreign invitations to the1958 Masters Tournament. They were the first non-white players to play at the Masters.
Ono continued to play well throughout the late 1950s and early 1960s, winning theKanto Pro Championship an additional four times.
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