Hogan wins Japan Speedgolf Open

Howdy speedgolf family!

You’re reading This Week in Speedgolf. Garrett Holt and I recorded the first-ever Speedgolf Baby Awards this morning. As soon as the show is published, you’ll hear about it.

Here’s what’s happening in speedgolf this week.

Japan saved the drama for the last page. On the Worlds 2024 track at the Seven Hundred Club, Rob Hogan — the most famous speedgolfer on Earth — rolled in a clutch birdie putt on 18 to secure the Japanese Speedgolf Open by a whisker. Possibly the most jarring part was that the man who commissioned a $300 leather Hogan Holster was carrying a golf bag. Is this real life?

Hogan posted 79 in 45:25 for 124:25, edging out 2024 Japanese Tour champion Tatsuya Shinmoto by 0:53 overall (Shinmoto’s 75 in the wind was proper golf, even by “normal” standards). World champ Jin Ota rounded out the podium with 80 in 47:04, then did the most Jin Ota thing possible: he publicly tipped the cap to both Hogan and Shinmoto for their performances.

The women’s race? Meguna Haga kept writing her own chapter of the modern Japan era with a 76 in 64:54 (140:54) to win the title and, per Speedgolf Japan, the season-long women’s crown again. I think that makes three Japan Open + Tour doubles for Haga — someone correct me if I’m undercounting.

The senior trophy went to Atsushi Oki, a name I’ve never seen before — not JUST because I don’t read Japanese particularly well! Now that Joe Matsui is a full-time Californian, Yasuki Ogawa has won the Senior division at every tour stop he’s attempted this year. Oki-san didn’t enter a single one of those events. He just strolled up to the Seven Hundred club (a tough track on the best of days) and shot 75 in 60:01 (135:01), beating Ogawa-san by four minutes. Who is this mysterious Japanese senior, and are we going to make him pee in a cup before Worlds?

Speedgolf Japan Open | Seven Hundred Club | Tochigi, Japan | Dec 12, 2025 | (highlight)

• Rob Hogan (IRL) | 79 in 45:25 | 124:25
• Tatsuya Shinmoto (JPN) | 75 in 50:14 | 125:14
• Jin Ota (JPN) | 80 in 47:04 | 127:04

• Atsushi Oki (JPN) | 75 in 60:01 | 135:01
• Yasuki Ogawa (JPN) | 83 in 56:17 | 139:17
• Shingo Bamba (JPN) | 88 in 59:12 | 147:12

• Meguna Haga (JPN) | 76 in 64:54 | 140:54

Season-long awards: Jin Ota (Men), Yasuki Ogawa (Senior), Meguna Haga (Women) (tour post)

Brad Hayward has won two in a row. First, he went wire-to-wire at the Taranaki Open, shooting level par on the golf course. Then last weekend, he showed up to the Northland Speedgolf Open and did it again*.* The points race is on for the 2025-26 New Zealand Speedgolf Tour and Brad sits comfortably on top, for now.

Hayward posted 70 in 44:11 for a speedgolf score of 114.11. He was the only one of the Taranaki Five (a name I just made up for the crew of Jamie Reid, Robin Smith, Bernie Smith, Harry Bateman, and Brad Hayward) who made the drive up north, but a 114 is like a US Dollar — accepted anywhere. Craig Russell finished two minutes faster than Hayward, shooting 74 — good enough for second.

Northland Speedgolf Open | Whangārei, New Zealand | Dec 2025

• 18-Hole Men: Brad Hayward (NZL) | 70 in 44:11 | 114.11
• 18-Hole Masters Men: Troy Harold (NZL) | 76 in 42:33 | 118.33
• 18-Hole Women: Rebecca Mehew (NZL) | 101 in 55:02 | 156.02
• 18-Hole Masters Women: Felicity Paterson (NZL) | 110 in 77:29 | 187.29
• 9-Hole Junior: Thomas McDonald (NZL) | 41 in 23:30 | 64.30
• 9-Hole Men: David Mullan (NZL) | 41 in 25:55 | 66.55

Filip Beerens deserves a medal. Or at least a beer.

Organizing a multi-country indoor speedgolf weekend means standardizing TrackMan settings across a dozen locations, coordinating 100-meter run logistics (treadmill? hallway? icy parking lot?), and answering the same question 47 times: “Wait, do I run first or hit first?”

The second annual International Indoor Speedgolf event (DON’T call it a World Championship) pulled it off — and the results were beautifully chaotic. The French even played indoor speedgolf… outdoors.

Julien Auder (France) claimed the gross men’s title with an 80 in 36:40 (119.23). Milla Hallanoro (Finland) topped the women’s field with a 78 in 52:26 (130.43) and held the age-adjusted crown too.

But here’s where it gets fun: age- and handicap-adjusted scoring reshuffled everything. Carl Svennerlind (Sweden, 19) and Baptiste Auder (France, 16) — Julien’s son — took adjusted division wins, while Constance Leblanc (France, 15) dominated the women’s adjusted category with a 9-hole effort that translated to serious speed.

The Auder family basically swept the podium. Father-son excellence or unfair home TrackMan advantage? You decide.

Indoor speedgolf isn’t just offseason filler. It’s a gateway — accessible, inclusive, and weirdly fun if you embrace the chaos of running laps in your socks while your buddy yells at a screen about wind direction.

I didn’t play this year. But I did drink beer with speedgolf buddies and promise we’d all play again once the snow melts. That counts, right?

• Men: Julien Auder (France) | 80 in 36:40 | 119.23
• Women: Milla Hallanoro (Finland) | 78 in 52:26 | 130.43
• Senior Men (50+): Manu Mäkelä (Finland, 53) | 79 in 47:55 | 126.92

• Men: Carl Svennerlind (Sweden, 19) | 77 in 42:48 | 113.57
• Women: Milla Hallanoro (Finland, 41) | 78 in 52:26 | 128.80
• Senior Men (50+): Manu Mäkelä (Finland, 53) | 79 in 47:55 | 122.03

• Men: Baptiste Auder (France, 16) | 88 in 34:24 | 111.66
• Women: Constance Leblanc (France, 15) | 51 (9 holes) in 25:02 | 130.19
• Senior Men (50+): Timo Eskeli (Finland, 64) | 93 in 51:00 | 131.12

Until next week, keep it in the short grass!