The OCEANTEE WPGA Series will literally break new ground next week when it kicks off its third season sponsored by the sustainable golf brand.
The first stop in the Series, which comprises nine events and culminates with the Vivien Saunders Fourball at Trentham in October, will be in Ireland at Glasson Lakehouse in Co Westmeath.
Staged over two days and featuring a pro-am followed by a stroke play tournament for professionals, it will be the first time an OCEANTEE WPGA Series event has been held outside England or Scotland.
Not that has put off pros from both those countries making the trip. Almost a third of the field will be made up of players from England and Scotland, including 1997 US Women’s Open winner Alison Nicholas MBE, former PGA Captain Sarah Bennett, and 2022 OCEANTEE WPGA Assistants’ champion Emma Allen.
Lynn McCool, the director of golf at the venue, will also be playing and, commenting on a first for her resort and Ireland, she said: “It’s very exciting to be bringing it to Glasson Lakehouse and I know the players will love the hotel and the golf course.
“I’m absolutely thrilled at the support from the pros from across Ireland, England and Scotland.”
In addition to WPGA members, 60 amateurs will play in the pro-am and they will get the chance afterwards to quiz Nicholas and Bennett about their careers.
“I’m really looking forward to the Q and A session with Alison Nicholas and Sarah Bennett after the pro-am dinner,” added McCool.
As is Bennett, who said: “I’m delighted to have been asked to participate in the Q&A evening session and having the chance to dust off my clubs and play.
“Playing alongside WPGA members, old friends and potential new ones at a stunning venue is the ideal way to commence the 2023 season.”
Unfamiliar courses will also be the stages for the increasingly popular team events on the schedule. The next stop after Glasson will be Thorpe Wood, Peterborough, where a pro-am will be staged while this season’s Mixed Greensomes will be held at Essendon Golf Club, Hertfordshire, in July.
Meanwhile, three of the remaining five one-day stroke play events return to tried and tested venues – Three Rivers in Essex, Mendip Spring in Somerset and Lanark, Scotland, while newcomer Crewe Golf Club in Cheshire completes the quartet.
By contrast, the blue riband event of the OCEANTEE WPGA Series, the Women’s PGA Championship returns to Open Championship qualifying venue, Kedleston Park, Derbyshire, in early July for the fourth year running. And, following its successful introduction last year, the WPGA Assistants’ Championship will run in tandem over the two days.
