Ryo

Ishikawa

Ishikawa flies in straight off a T3 in the Japan Open. He’s played just four events since the restart, two on the PGA TOUR and two on his home circuit. Ishikawa missed the cut at the PGA Championship but secured a T51 at the U.S. Open. Once a rising star, he dipped outside of the top 200 in the OWGR in 2017 and his slump lasted for a couple of years. More recently, the 29-year-old won three times in 2019, all on the Japan Golf Tour. He’s one of eight Japanese players in the field this week and presents himself as an interesting DFS option.

There’s a lot at stake for the one-time Japanese wonder kid this week and he knows it. “I want to get back to the PGA TOUR,” he told pgatour.com last week. “In 2013, it was my first year there, I was in my early 20s and I was kind of a different player. I’ve grown and matured a bit more since and I’m trying to get better all the time. I miss the golf courses and the set-ups in the U.S. I also miss competing against the best players in the world.” He made 11 top tens in 147 career starts on the PGA Tour, but he already has an invite to the Honda Classic and so is using that appearance and this in a bid to get himself starts at Bay Hill, the PLAYERS and the Dell Match Play. He won three times in Japan in 2019 and was T24 in the Singapore Open, his only start of 2020.

Ishikawa now takes a back seat to Hideki Matsuyama when it comes to feeling the pressure from Japanese media. Perhaps enjoying his role as second fiddle, Ishikawa has picked up some steam in 2019 with top 30s in 10 of his last 11 worldwide starts including a pair of wins on the Japan Golf Tour. As for his opening round at the ZOZO, he pelted 12 greens in regulation and was one of just two golfers to turn in a blemish-free card (Gary Woodland). “I failed to hole my first three or four birdie opportunities and it could have gone either way, but I stayed patient and it led to a nice birdie on 18. I was struggling afterwards, but was able to make a few up-and-downs, and also make some long par putts.” Ishikawa hasn’t posted a top 10 on the PGA TOUR since his T10 at the 2016-17 CIMB Classic, 20 starts ago.

The star from Japan has seen his light dimmer a bit over recent years but he’s finding his game again in 2019. Ishikawa has won twice on the Japan Golf Tour this season and arrives with top 30s in 10 of his last 11 starts on that circuit. His comfort in Japan should also play in his favor this week as the TOUR plays the inaugural event at Narashino CC. The 28-year-old should be considered a high-upside sleeper pick in weekly formats this week but gamers should also keep their expectations to a reasonable level.

The one-time wonder boy of Japanese golf was usurped by Hideki Matsuyama, who insiders suggest took heed of Ishikawa’s mistakes and vowed not to repeat them (the details of that remain vague but off-the-course distractions are the gist). Ishikawa has played a little on the Asian Tour but mostly in Japan since dropping off the 2017 PGA Tour. His last European Tour start was the Asian Tour co-sanctioned Maybank Championship (T5) and he ended last year with T2 on the Japan Tour. Moreover he opened 2019 with 69-66 to be T2 at halfway in the Singapore Open, his only start this year. The only downer of all of this is he finished 73-75 for T47.

When you boil it down, all this will do is give him an opportunity to play an additional event if he doesn’t qualify for the U.S. Open. STM allows non-members unlimited sponsor exemptions but they remain restricted to 12 starts. Ishikawa is making his seventh of the year at this week’s Palmer Invite. He’s already exempt into the British and WGC-Bridgestone, and will eventually qualify for the PGA Championship. That’s 10 tournaments. If he qualifies for the U.S. Open, it will leave one start inside the cap. (The Masters will not count against his total because he received a special invitation, which is exempt from the restricted number of starts. THE PLAYERS also does not count.) Therefore, in Ishikawa’s situation, STM has greater value as it relates to qualifying for status for 2013. Should he fail to crack the top 125 in non-member earnings but still rank 126-150, he’ll be exempt into the final stage of Q School. Despite today’s news, there is no reason to elevate his fantasy value.

This was a stunner. Haas owned a 3-up lead with five to play. And he closed with four pars and a bogey, but that’s match play for you. Ishikawa buried birdies on the 14th, 15th and 17th holes to even the match. A pedestrian par at the par-4 18th secured the victory. He’ll play the winner of Justin Rose v. Paul Lawrie on Thursday.

Ishikawa has made three of four cuts, but hasn’t been able to bank any big finishes. His 13th place tie at Torrey Pines was followed up by a disappointing tie for 72nd at the Northern Trust and a second round exit at the WGC-Accenture Match Play. If he hopes to make noise this week the 122nd ranked Strokes Gained-Putting stat will have to improve.

That The Bashful Prince was in Puerto Rico at all speaks to his quest for an exemption into the Masters. Of course, he was granted a special invitation on Tuesday, so the focus shifted to how that would influence his motivation in this week’s opposite event. Thus far, his results indicate that he’s been empowered. Ishikawa split only five (of 14) fairways and hit 10 greens today but he required only 22 putts en route to six birdies.

The 14-under 70-67-69-68=274 will mark the highest finish of Ishikawa’s PGA TOUR career. He secured solo second place, two strokes back of champion George McNeill. Afterwards, he told Golf Channel’s Scott Walker that he’d consider accepting Special Temporary Membership on the TOUR, thus allowing him to accept unlimited sponsor exemptions. Ishikawa will be in solid form heading to next week’s Transitions Championship. He finished the week third in putting with a 1.653 putting average.