Another tremendous field is heading to the Bing Lee/Samsung Women’s NSW Open at Oatlands Golf Club from 25 to 27 January.

No less than 13 Ladies European Tour (LET) winners, many of them multiple winners, will be teeing it up in the $125,000 tournament. 84 professionals from 15 countries are confirmed starters including players from USA, Canada, France, Sweden, Norway, England, Denmark, Scotland, Japan, Ireland, Wales and New Zealand.

Headlining the field will be the defending champion, 15-year-old amateur Lydia Ko. The Kiwi made international headlines when she captured the 2012 Bing Lee / Samsung NSW Women’s Open title as a 14-year-old twelve months ago.

The victory at Oatlands proved to be the catalyst of a phenomenal 2012 for the Kiwi. Ko was the leading amateur at the US Women’s Open in July and went on to win the prestigious US Women’s Amateur in August. She then dominated world golf headlines again after a stunning win on the strongest women’s professional golf tour, the LPGA, at the CN Women’s Canadian Open two weeks later. She defeated a field which included 49 of the top 50 ranked players in the world.

Leading the local challenge will be Stacey Keating, Lindsey Wright, Frances Bondad, Nikki Garrett, Karen Lunn, Joanne Mills and Kristie Smith, all of whom have tasted victory on the LET.

Whilst a person who has won over 80 titles worldwide, England’s Laura Davies will headline the international challenge. Davies is joined in the field by LPGA winner Lorie Kane and European tour winners Swede Caroline Hedwall, Lynnette Brooky from New Zealand, another Englishwoman Felicity Johnson, Norway’s Marianne Skarpnord and Frenchwoman Gwladys Nocera, who has an impressive 10 titles to her name.

Ko, will not be the only amateur the pros will have to keep an eye on. While Ko is the ranked the No.1 female amateur in the world, Western Australian Minjee Lee is ranked No.2. Fellow West Australian, Hayley Bettencourt, is ranked no.17 on the rankings, with Victorian Grace Lennon also ranked in the top 20 at No.18.

The tournament is known for thrilling finishes and with the calibre of the field in 2013, it is sure to be another enthralling tournament.

The ongoing generous support of title sponsors Bing Lee and Samsung and the NSW Government means the players will be vying for their share of the $125,000 purse. With the tournament holding official Rolex World Rankings event status, valuable points are up for grabs.