- Kota Kaneko has been named the 2026 Sir Henry Cotton Rookie of the Year.
- The 24-year-old is the second Japanese winner of the award.
- His season included victory at the Austrian Alpine Open in May.
Kota Kaneko has been named the 2026 Sir Henry Cotton Rookie of the Year, becoming only the second Japanese player to win the DP World Tour’s award for its leading newcomer, after Ryo Hisatsune in 2023.
The 24-year-old earned it by finishing as the leading eligible player in the Race to Dubai Rankings. He arrives at this week’s DP World Tour Championship in 49th place and is the only contender for the award in the field at Jumeirah Golf Estates.
Kota Kaneko has been named the Sir Henry Cotton Rookie of the Year for 2026 🙌 https://t.co/HlGomTzSMI
— DP World Tour (@DPWorldTour) November 12, 2026
How did Kaneko get here?
Kaneko won twice on the Japan Golf Tour in 2025 and topped its Order of Merit, which earned him a DP World Tour exemption for this season. He finished T15 at the Qatar Masters in February, only his second start on the circuit. Back-to-back appearances at the Volvo China Open and the Turkish Airlines Open brought another top 20 and then his first top ten.
In May, Kaneko shared second place at the Soudal Open in Belgium, where Richard Sterne came from five back to win. Seven days later he won the Austrian Alpine Open. He opened with three consecutive 65s and closed with a 67 to win his maiden title by two shots from Ricardo Gouveia and Davis Bryant. That fortnight took him from 77th to 11th in the rankings. Four more top-20 finishes followed, enough to secure his place among the top 50 who went on to Dubai.
“First of all, I’m very honoured to receive the award,” said Kaneko. “The first person was Ryo Hisatsune, which is a good friend of mine, he’s the same age, and I know him really well. So, I’m really happy to be in the same category with him.
“I think the level of play in Japan has gotten better, and a lot of the players want to go overseas to play. I think that helps a lot of players coming out here and playing really well.”
Kota Kaneko, the 2026 Sir Henry Cotton Rookie of the Year 👏 He becomes the second Japanese winner of the prestigious award, following Ryo Hisatsune, who claimed the title in 2023. https://t.co/AitEmMQh3a
— DP World Tour (@DPWorldTour) November 12, 2026
A growing Japanese presence
Kaneko is one of five Japanese players to have won six DP World Tour titles between them since 2023. His win in Austria was the first of two by Japanese players this season. The second came in October, when Yuto Katsuragawa won the Genesis Championship from 106th in the Race to Dubai to keep his card. Guy Kinnings, the DP World Tour’s chief executive, said that run reflected the partnerships the Tour has built with other circuits around the world.
Kaneko said the Austria win gave him the confidence that he could compete on the DP World Tour. Playing in both Play-Off events had been one of his goals for the season.
Related: Joost Luiten Leads by One in Dubai
Simon Bale
Simon Bale is the publisher of Golf Today. A low single-figure handicap golfer, he was previously a major shareholder and course reviewer for Top100GolfCourses.com for over a decade, starting in 2010. Through this role, he developed extensive knowledge of golf course design and architecture while playing more than 300 courses worldwide.