Iwasaki and Imano set early pace

Aguri Iwasaki’s conservative approach at The Crowns paid off as he traded four birdies against one bogey for a first round three-under-par 67 to share the opening round lead with Daiki Imano on Thursday. 

Imano, chasing his first win on the JGTO, reached the summit of the leaderboard after mixing his card with five birdies and two bogeys at the Nagoya Golf Club.

Yuki Inamori, who won The Crowns in 2022, is one shot back of the leaders after retuning with a 68 to share third place with Taiga Nagano and Juvic Pagunsan from the Philippines.

Iwasaki started promisingly with a birdie on the second hole, but dropped a shot on the fourth hole before four straight pars and a birdie on nine saw him make the turn in 34.

With gusty conditions threatening to affect scores, the 27-year-old, who is chasing his third JGTO win this week, decided to play it safe to protect his position.

“The wind picked up in the second half, so the conditions became tough. The areas around the green were very difficult, so hitting those approach shots was quite stressful.

“The pin positions and wind were both tricky, so I focused on avoiding bogeys. I played safely instead of going straight at the pin. That strategy worked well today,” said Iwasaki.

Imano, meanwhile, banked on his course familiarity, having practised on the course frequently during his offseason to start his campaign on a bright note. 

“I live nearby and I’m often invited by the club to play here during the off-season. I came here at least 10 times! 

“I think among all the players competing this week, I probably know the course almost as well as the club’s own members. Being familiar with the course helped me today,” said the 28-year-old.

Inamori’s patience around the Wago course paid off as he stayed in the mix after trading four birdies against two bogeys.

“This round is all about patience. It’s easy to make bogeys out of nowhere on these firm greens. Even from the fairway, the ball sometimes doesn’t stop—it’s that hard. So I was mainly trying to play for par, and any birdies were just a bonus,” said Inamori.

Leading first round scores
*All Japanese unless indicated otherwise
67 – Aguri Iwasaki, Daiki Imano 
68 – Taiga Nagano, Juvic Pagunsan (PHI), Yuki Inamori
69 – Kunihiro Kamii, Kota Kaneko, Kohei Okada, Toru Taniguchi, Song Yong-han, Yamato Hatta

Ends