Japanese golf icon Masashi ‘Jumbo’ Ozaki has died at age 78. He was inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame in 2011.
Masashi ‘Jumbo’ Ozaki passed away on Tuesday at the age of 78 after battling colon cancer. Ozaki secured a record 94 victories on the Japan Golf Tour Organization (JGTO), including five Japan Open titles and six Japan PGA Championships. He was inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame in 2011. His only win outside Japan came in 1972 at the New Zealand PGA Championship.
Most Successful Golfer in JGTO History
No golfer in Japanese history has matched Ozaki’s dominance. His 94 JGTO wins are 43 more than second-place Isao Aoki, and he won the tour’s Order of Merit a record 12 times. Thanks to his domestic success, Ozaki spent 200 weeks in the top 10 of the Official World Golf Ranking and played a key role in popularizing golf in Japan. While international wins were rare, he still posted top-10 finishes at the 1973 Masters, the 1989 U.S. Open, and the 1979 Open Championship.
A Unique Life On and Off the Course
Nicknamed ‘Jumbo’ for his 1.81m height and 90kg frame, Ozaki was known for his powerful drives and all-or-nothing playing style, which made him a fan favorite in Japan. His path to golf was unconventional—he was a promising baseball player who won a national high school championship and played professionally for three years before switching to golf at age 23. He claimed his first JGTO title in 1973 at age 26 and continued winning until age 55.
Ozaki also ventured into music in the late 1980s, releasing three singles that all charted in Japan, further cementing his status as a cultural icon.