Minori: a picture-book parkland on the Kanto Plain

Set on the flat farmland of Omitama in Ibaraki, Taiheiyo Club Minori Course is an 18-hole, par-72 layout designed by Toshiharu Kurakami and later renovated by Norio Honma. Wooded fairways, bentgrass greens and well-placed water give it a traditional, strategic feel, with each hole framed like a painting; the par-3 third is wrapped by water on the left and behind, and the closing hole bends gently right toward a pond-guarded green. Stretching to 6,946 yards, it has hosted the TOTO Japan Classic, co-sanctioned by the LPGA and JLPGA tours, in 2016, 2017, 2020 and 2023.

A tournament course where every hole is framed like a painting, and the finish plays out beneath the restaurant windows.

The clubhouse displays works by artist Tatsuya Ishiodori, and its second-floor restaurant overlooks the 18th. Lake Kasumigaura, Japan's second-largest lake, lies just beyond the course, and Mito's Kairakuen plum garden is an easy add-on in late winter. From JR Ishioka Station on the Joban Line, a reserved club bus reaches the course in about 15 minutes. Minori is a members' club, so visitors play with a member's introduction.