LONDON, Dec 24 (Bernama-PA Media/dpa) — Japan’s most successful golf player, Masashi ‘Jumbo’ Ozaki, has died at the age of 78, reported Xinhua.
Ozaki, who was known for his power off the tee, began his sporting career as a baseball pitcher but switched to golf and won a record 94 titles on the Japan Golf Tour.
He was ranked as high as the world number five in 1996 and boasted top-10 finishes at the Masters, the US Open and the British Open, while he was inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame in 2011.
A statement on jgto.org said Ozaki had died of colon cancer, with chairman Yutaka Morohoshi adding: “The golf world has lost a truly great man.”
–BERNAMA-XINHUA