2026 Baycurrent Classic at Yokohama Country Club (West) – Preview

The PGA Tour returns to Japan this week for the 2026 Baycurrent Classic at Yokohama Country Club. The event is the third tournament of the eight event FedExCup Fall schedule and features a 72 player, no cut field competing for an $8 million purse and 500 FedExCup points.

The tournament was first played in 2019 as Japan’s first official PGA Tour event, producing memorable wins by Tiger Woods and Hideki Matsuyama before Xander Schauffele won last year’s inaugural edition at Yokohama Country Club. Schauffele closed with a 64 to finish one stroke ahead of Max Greyserman for his 10th PGA TOUR title.

About 20 miles south of Tokyo, Yokohama Country Club is a 36 hole facility that opened in 1960, with the tournament using a composite layout consisting of 16 holes from the West Course and Nos. 17 and 18 from the East Course. The West Course was extensively renovated by Bill Coore and Ben Crenshaw in 2016, with the layout known for its rolling terrain, undulating fairways and dense pine trees. The composite course will play as a par 71 at 7,322 yards this week.

The Field

The Baycurrent Classic features a strong 72 player field that includes 16 players ranked inside the OWGR top 50 led by defending champion Xander Schauffele and Wyndham Clark. Collin Morikawa, Justin Thomas, Jordan Spieth, Rickie Fowler, Keegan Bradley and Hideki Matsuyama headline the group of former major champions, while Jacob Bridgeman enters after winning the Biltmore Championship Asheville for his second victory of the 2026 season.

The field also includes several other notable names, including Ryan Gerard, Min Woo Lee, Adam Scott, Michael Brennan, Kurt Kitayama, Michael Thorbjornsen, Maverick McNealy, Sungjae Im, and Brian Harman. Matsuyama leads the Japanese contingent that also includes Ryo Hisatsune, Keita Nakajima, Takumi Kanaya and four additional sponsor exemptions.

Course Features

*There is was no Strokes Gained data for last year’s tournament

Yokohama Country Club’s West Course presents a striking blend of natural terrain and strategic architectural refinement. Originally part of a 36-hole facility (East and West) founded in 1960 by designers Takeo Aiyama and Hideo Takemura, the West Course has since seen significant enhancements, including a major renovation by Bill Coore and Ben Crenshaw, which beautifully incorporates the original use of natural valleys and ridges, and which focused on widening the course, strategic bunkering, and improved green complexes.

This week, it will play as a slightly composite course with 16 holes from the West and two from the East. As a par 71 and stretching to 7,322 yards, the course is distinctive in its configuration: it features only two par-5s, three par-3s, and a remarkable 13 par-4s—the most par-4s of any course currently used on Tour. In preparation for this event, 15 of the 18 holes had some type of modifications, including the removal of numerous trees.

Yokohama is renowned for its wide fairways, framed by dense clusters of pine trees, sprawling undulations, and classic Coore and Crenshaw bunkering in key landing zones. The layout combines scoring opportunities with demanding long holes, making it suitable for a wide range of playing styles.

Last year in its inaugural PGA tournament, Yokohama played at an average of -0.96 per round, but was a tale of two courses. The first and third rounds played at +0.74 due to a typhoon that impacted the area with heavy wind and rain. Friday and Sunday were both calmer with soft, wet conditions, and the course played -2.64 for those rounds.

Similar to last year, one of the biggest storylines this week will be the weather. The Tokyo area has been very wet over the last month and there is another possible typhoon passing near the course mid-week. Also, wind typically plays a factor with breezes from nearby Tokyo Bay affecting approach shots, especially those from elevated tees.

Last year, the back nine played much tougher than the front. Last year’s runner-up Max Greyserman echoed what the data shows, “Front’s pretty gettable, back nine’s a lot tougher, especially the finishing holes.”

Said Sam Ryder on the course setup, “There’s definitely some tough holes and there’s a mix of some easier holes where you can get some wedges and there’s some tougher holes where you can step up and hit some really good tee balls.”

On the front nine, one of the standout holes is the downhill par-4 4th. It is guarded by a hidden pond to the right and a solitary tree planted in the center of the fairway, which forces thoughtful positioning from the tee. The back nine underscores the course’s punch. The par-3 12th is particularly formidable, playing over water to a raised green flanked by bunkers on both sides.

Even with wide fairways, distance and accuracy off the tee are both important here. Last year, players hit the fairway with ease, leading to a driving accuracy rate of 69% while driving distance was right at Tour average. However, extremely errant drives will find trouble amidst the trees. Said Bud Cauley about off the tee play here, “It gives you a little space off the tee but if you miss, you’re really penalized.”

The Zoysia rough is not penal at only around 3″, giving longer players who miss the fairway easier approaches with wedges and shorter irons. The course also offers flexibility: a few of the shorter par-4s can be played as “driveable” if tee boxes are moved forward, offering birdie opportunities for aggressive players.

The main course defense is the green complexes, which have been described as “diabolical” for their tight lies, false fronts, turtle-back contours, and overall undulation. With so many wedges being hit, spin control will be crucial. The greens are average in size, measuring 6,500 square feet, and should run at a slower 11.5 on the Stimpmeter. Collin Morikawa remarked that there are “a lot of bowl greens, sloped edges, it makes the green complexes a lot smaller.”

Thanks to the Rabbit Hole (the only place that has ARG shot rate data), 60% of ARG shots are from short-grass areas with 30% coming from bunkers, and only 10% from the rough.

Greyserman described around the green play in detail, saying, “this golf course is very much like maybe Northeast golf, lot of slope on the golf course, around the greens, on the greens. So
a lot of runoffs, a lot of runoffs, bunkers, fairway runoffs. I enjoy playing that style of golf maybe like a Pinehurst No. 2 type of golf where everything’s shaved around the greens. I think it’s maybe more fun to play and there’s more creativity. It’s kind of like linksy golf around the greens.”

Greyserman remarked further on other courses with greens similar to Yokohama, “there’s a couple greens out here that remind me of maybe Pinehurst No. 2 and maybe a little bit of Sedgefield as well. It’s a Coore & Crenshaw, but the greens are kind of Donald Ross-esque type of greens. So if I had to maybe pick two courses, maybe a little bit of Sedgefield, a little bit of Pinehurst No. 2 on the greens and the surrounds the way they run off.”

Most Important Stats For Success at Yokohama CC (West)

*In order of importance

• SG: Approach
• SG: Par 4
• Total Driving
• Proximity 150+ yds
• SG: Putting (Bentgrass)
• SG: ARG (Short Grass)
• Putting 5-15 feet
• Bogey Avoidance
• Good Drive %
• SG: No-Cut events

Key Rabbit Hole Filters

• Course Region: Asia
• Scoring Conditions: Easy
• Field Strength: Strong
• Event Season: Fall
• Event Type: No Cut
• Field Size: Small
• Greens Speed: Slow
• Greens Surface: Bent
• Rough Surface: Zoysia
• Architect/Redesigner: Coore/Crenshaw
• Fairway Accuracy: Easy
• OTT: Easy
• ARG: Average/Difficult