Stars align for top women’s events

PRIZEMONEY is on the rise and two of the country New South Wales best golf courses have also put their hands up to host some of the best women golfers in the world.

And top of their ‘wish’ list will be North Coast professional Sarah Kemp, who has been having her best year yet on the US LPGA Tour.

On the rare occasions she is ‘home’ Kemp lives at Forster on the Mid North Coast of the state.

And that means Magenta Shores on the Central Coast and Bonville, just south of Coffs Harbour, will be right on her doorstep if she makes it home to compete.

Not that Kemp would need to qualify, thanks to her outstanding overseas record.

Yet there will be a string of young amateurs as well as some Aussie pros desperate to hone their games on these testing layouts by taking part in new series of six regional qualifying events for women, beginning at Mollymook next month.

**MAJOR ATTRACTION: Local hero Sarah Kemp is bound to make her presence felt in the NSW events. – Photo WPGA.**

But first there will be qualifying events at Mollymook, Wagga, Orange, Bathurst, Dubbo and Narrabri.

And the ‘carrot’ for those who play well in the qualifying events will be the chance to compete in the Women’s NSW Open at Magenta Shores Golf & Country Club from March 29-31, 2024 as well as the Australian Women’s Classic at Bonville on the Coffs Coast from April 5-7.

These back-to-back tournaments will see a sizeable jump in prizemoney, with the purses for each now set at $500,000.

The two championships – already key events on the Women’s Australian PGA Tour Schedule (WPGA Tour) will also return to the Ladies European Tour (LET) calendar in 2024.

The excitement will build as the six 36-hole Regional Open Qualifying Tournaments will each carry a purse of $50,000.

They will form part of the 2023-2024 schedule prior to the back-to-back major Aussie events from late March.

CEO of the WPGA Tour of Australasia, Karen Lunn, expressed her delight at what lies ahead for the best women golfers in this country.

“The WPGA is thrilled to partner with Golf NSW to deliver world-class golf this summer,” said Lunn.

“To compete for more than $1 million on some great courses in regional NSW is a first for our organisation and a fantastic opportunity to showcase our game’s best players and women’s sports in general.”

State Minister for Jobs and Tourism John Graham said the NSW Government was pleased to be supporting these major women’s sporting events which would increase tourism in several regions.

“These tournaments will feature some of Australia’s top female golfers and also showcase some of the nation’s best golf courses, putting these areas on the ‘must visit’ list for golfers who attend the tournaments and the fans who follow them,” said Graham.

“Sport brings communities together, and having some of the nation’s leading female golfers play at courses across regional NSW will bring social and economic benefit to these areas.”

It has also been confirmed that the Australian Women’s Classic and the Women’s NSW Open would be broadcast through Foxtel and Kayo via SEN, with the final rounds of all Regional Qualifying Series events to be live-streamed on the SEN network and Golf NSW social and digital channels.