The Japanese Tour has expanded its involvement with the OneAsia Tour, announcing two co-sanctioned events for 2013.
In an announcement that may have significant repercussions in the ongoing rivalry between the OneAsia Tour and its rival the Asian Tour, the Japan Golf Tour Organisation (JGTO) have announced they will co-sanction OneAsia's opening two events next year, the Thailand Open and Indonesia PGA Championship.
The JGTO had previously co-sanctioned the 2012 Enjoy Jakarta Indonesia Open but now appears to be increasingly linking itself with OneAsia.
"This is a significant development for OneAsia," said the group's commissioner and chairman Sang Y. Chun.
"Since our launch in 2009 our objective has been to build a circuit that brings together the whole of the Asia-Pacific region.
"Furthermore, the Japan Golf Tour Organisation is one of the world's leading circuits and we look forward to welcoming many of the finest players in the game to the Thailand Open and Indonesia PGA Championship."
Established in 2009, the OneAsia Tour is a joint venture between the PGA Tour of Australasia, the China Golf Association, the Korean Golf Association and the Korean PGA.
The JGTO were invited to join from the outset, but had resisted the invitation until co-sanctioning the tournament in Jakarta this year.
The news comes as another blow to the more established Asian Tour after that organisation attempted to block its players from participating in OneAsia events.
Australians Matthew Griffin and Terry Pilkadaris, along with Dutchman Guido van der Valk and Malaysian player Anis Hassan were fined by the Asian Tour for playing in a OneAsia tournament in 2010. They were also blocked from playing in any more tournaments organised by the rival organisation.
But after a year-long legal battle, the Singapore High Court ruled this was a restraint of their trade, saying the Asian Tour had no right to prevent them playing for OneAsia and ordering the tour to reimburse the players' fines and legal costs.
The ruling comes as a boost for professionals trying to make a living on both circuits, as the Asian Tour generally comprises of about 20 events, while OneAsia usually organises about 10 tournaments per year, although these feature higher prize money.