Ishii was born in
Shizuoka Prefecture,
Japan, and started playing golf at the age of 15. Ishii won a number of events on the Japanese and Asian circuits through the 1950s and 1960s. One of his top triumphs was at the 1964
Capitol Hills Open in
Manila, Philippines on the
Far East Circuit. Ishii was tied for the lead with Australian golfer
Peter Thomson at the beginning of the fourth round. He outshot Thomson by four strokes over the course of the final round to win. His good play helped him earn three consecutive special foreign invitations to the Masters in the mid-1960s. He was one of the first Asian players to play in the event. He made the cut the first two years. He also represented Japan in the
Canada Cup in
1963 and
1964. ==Personal life and death==