Golf courses in Japan embody many dualities. From an architectural perspective, there is a balance between Eastern and Western influences. Many of the country’s most respected courses were designed and built in the 1930s by Englishman Charles Alison, a partner in the great HS Colt. In fact, the top three tracks in this survey were all created by Alison, including Hirono, the so-called Pine Valley of Japan.

But the country has also produced outstanding architects like Komei Ohtani, who built the fourth-place track. Tokyo Golf ClubIn 1939, Ueda Osamu (Osaka Golf Club), Kinya Fujita and Shiro Akaboshi (Kasumigaseki’s Western Course) and Takeo Aiyama, who built it Yokohama Country Clubit was later redesigned by Bill Coore and Ben Crenshaw. In fact, many of Japan’s best courses have been redesigned by Western architects, such as the firm Mackenzie and Ebert in Hirono and Tom Fazio on Kasumigaseki’s East Course, home of the 2021 Summer Olympics.

Another duality that these designers often have to address is the long-standing Japanese tradition of having two separate greens on each hole; one is a warm season grass and the other is a cool season grass. Since then, some courses have combined greens into a single course, while Tokyo Golf Club and Kawaguchiko Country Club keep using both.

Editor’s Note: Our Best Courses in Japan ranking is part of Golf Digest’s Best Courses in Every Country list. Check back in the next few weeks for more on our rankings of the best golf around the world.

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