Canberra's Brendan Jones. Photo: Getty Images
He's Australian golf's $9 million man - and odds are you've never heard of him.
For a bloke who has openly admitted to not always being in love with the game, Canberra's Brendan Jones has carved out a more than handy living on the low-profile Japanese tour.
Last weekend's victory at the Mizuno Open took Jones to more than $9 million in prizemoney in the land of the rising sun, making him the most successful foreigner to play on the Japanese circuit.
Perhaps more importantly, it also guaranteed the 38-year-old a spot at his fourth British Open.
The Royal Canberra member is in action at the Invitational Sega Sammy Cup in Hokkaido and will return home next week for a quick break before flying halfway around the world to tee off at Muirfield (July 18-21).
Jones has racked up an impressive 13 tournament wins in Japan since joining the tour a decade ago.
Former professional Brett Ogle said Jones deserved more recognition for his achievement given the quality of the fields in Japan.
''Yeah, definitely, 13 wins, that's awesome,'' Ogle said.
''Because I won a few in Europe and a couple in America, you get more accolades and people know you more, but because Japan has no TV coverage it's just forgotten.
''Japan has always been the forgotten tour.''
It may be out of mind, but Japan is nothing if not lucrative.
Jones earned $1.2 million last year - placing him at No.48 in the BRW top 50 earners of Australian sport for 2012.
It's the sort of coin NRL superstars can only dream of, the likes of Johnathan Thurston, Billy Slater, Jarryd Hayne, Greg Inglis and Benji Marshall all missing the list.
Jones has also won on the second-tier US Nationwide tour in 2004, leading to him playing on the US tour in 2005 and 2006.
It will be the second straight year he has featured in the British Open after finishing in a tie for 72nd last year to go with appearances in 2004 (missed the cut) and 2008 (tied 70th).
Ogle believes the experience Jones has gained from the tight courses in Japan will work to his advantage on a notoriously tough Muirfield layout where accurate driving is essential.
''When he first came out he was reasonably erratic, but most of the courses in Japan are built in hilly areas and have lots of areas out of bounds, so he's learnt to control his game,'' Ogle said.
''He's become a very rounded player.
''Brendan plays well within himself and he knows how to get the job done, and that's why he's earned $9 million bucks.''
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