Keita Nakajima makes amateur golf history as first male two-time winner of the Mark H. McCormack Medal

August 24, 2022

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Keita Nakajima has made amateur golf history.

The 22-year-old from Japan is the first male player to be awarded the Mark H. McCormack Medal twice as the world’s top men’s amateur golfer and has held the No. 1 ranking for a record 83 weeks. Nakajima and 2020 winner Takumi Kanaya are the only Japanese players to be awarded the medal.

“It is a great honor to receive the McCormack Medal again,” said Nakajima via a release. “The excitement I felt when I saw the medal in Dubai last year is still fresh in my memory. Seeing it again in Paris (at the World Amateur Team Championship) will be really wonderful.

“I appreciate the opportunities I have been given thanks to the medal. I hope I have created a pathway for not only Japanese players but all Asia-Pacific players to pursue the dream they have.”

Established in 2007, the McCormack Medal winner receives exemptions into the 2023 U.S. Open and 2023 British Open.

“On behalf of the USGA, I would like to extend our congratulations to Keita for earning the prestigious McCormack Medal,” said John Bodenhamer, chief championships officer for the USGA. “He is creating history with his second award and has played unbelievable golf over the past two years. Nakajima has an impeccable record on a worldwide level and all of us at the USGA look forward to watching him excel as his career continues.”