WPGA | How to follow: Webex Players Series Sydney

18 Feb
How to follow: Webex Players Series Sydney

The Webex Players Series reaches its 2024/25 finale this week as the Challenger PGA Tour of Australasia season hits the business end and the WPGA Tour of Australasia gets into full swing.

Being played for the second time at Castle Hill Country Club, Webex Players Series Sydney features a field of 144 men and women competing for one prize purse and one trophy joined by all abilities and junior players on the weekend.

New host Peter O’Malley is in the field and no doubt harbouring hopes of presenting himself the trophy.

O’Malley is joined by another veteran in Brendan Jones, who not only holds a record three top-10 finishes at this event, but is also a member at Castle Hill with his photo on the wall as an adidas Australian Amateur winner. He is bound for the PGA TOUR Champions this year.

The two experienced campaigners are joined by some of the brightest lights of the local circuits, including Cassie Porter in a final Australian tune-up before she heads back to the LPGA Tour in her debut year.

Porter is joined on the women’s side by birthday girl Kelsey Bennett who enters in red-hot form after firing a 7-under round at Terrey Hills Golf Club on Monday in a pro-am, while the sister of last year’s winner, Momoka Kobori, returns from a top-30 in Saudi Arabia.

The men’s field features seven winners from this season, as well as past Order of Merit winners Jake McLeod and Jed Morgan. A strong contingent of Asian Tour -based Aussies, including Travis Smyth and Jack Thompson, will also be hoping to have some success in the north-western suburbs of the Harbour City.

For those who teed it up last year, the challenge will present differently after the 2024 event was played following a deluge of rain in Sydney that left the course softer and slower than desired for all.

Firmer and faster playing surfaces have been a constant theme early in the week at the Bob Harrison-redesigned layout, which will feature five new tee locations across both the men and women with more chances to challenge the par-5s for the women’s field.

The closing stretch will provide plenty of interest, with lots of scoring opportunities starting at the par-5 15th, driveable par-4 16th, par-3 penultimate hole and par-5 last.

Players needing to find their best to challenge Kazuma Kobori’s mark of 24-under-par for the event, a winning total still one short of the tournament scoring record of David Micheluzzi from 2023.

LAST YEAR’S CHAMPION: Kazuma Kobori

PRIZEMONEY: $250,000

LIVE SCORES: www.pga.org.au; www.wpga.org.au;

TV COVERAGE: Webex Players Series Sydney is live on Fox Sports, available on Foxtel and Kayo.

*All times AEDT.

Round 3: Saturday 3pm-6pm (Fox Sports 503/Kayo)

Final Round: Sunday 1pm-6pm (Fox Sports 503/Kayo)

HEADLINERS

Jack Buchanan – 2024 WA PGA and Webex Players Series SA champion

Cassie Porter – LPGA Tour member

Jediah Morgan – 2021 Australian PGA Championship winner

Kelsey Bennett – 2024 The Athena champion