While the idea of holding the men’s and women’s Australian Opens in parallel was celebrated as a progressive move, several of Australia’s top LPGA stars voiced growing frustration with how it was executed, especially in 2024. Hannah Green, fresh off a strong opening round, didn’t shy away from criticizing the setup. She pointed out that the pin placements were unusually generous, suggesting that tournament organizers were trying to protect scores rather than challenge players. “The pins were pretty generous today… I do think if the men played at this course, the pins would be much more tucked,” she said. The softer, more forgiving conditions may have made for lower scores, but not the kind of test elite players like Green expect at a national championship. That criticism didn’t remain isolated. 

Minjee Lee wasn’t alone in her concerns. Several top Australian pros echoed frustrations around both the course setup and the tournament’s awkward scheduling. Their voices helped push Golf Australia to launch a formal review of the event’s format, and what followed was a major shift in direction.

Starting in 2026, the Women’s Australian Open, which was first played in 1974, will return as a standalone event, no longer played alongside the men’s tournament. It will appear on the WPGA Tour of Australasia and the Ladies European Tour (LET), though notably, it won’t carry LPGA co-sanctioning, which means players won’t earn LPGA points. The tournament is set to be held at Kooyonga Golf Club in Adelaide from March 12–15, with the venue locked in through at least 2028.

The timing shift matters just as much as the format change. In the past, the Open landed right after the LPGA Tour Championship in late November, leaving little time for top players to travel, recover, and prep. Hannah Green even said it wasn’t the right time to bring in the “best of the best.” Moving the event to March, just ahead of the LPGA’s Asia swing, puts it in a much better spot on the calendar. The hope? That stars like Green, Minjee Lee, and Nelly Korda make their return, giving the Aussie Open the firepower it’s been missing.

PGA Players Back LPGA Complaints on Aussie Open Format

While top LPGA players like Hannah Green and Minjee Lee were vocal about their frustrations with the old format of the Australian Open, they weren’t the only ones raising red flags. Some of Australia’s top male professionals echoed similar concerns. 

Major winner Cameron Smith, never one to hold back, questioned whether the softened greens and generous pin placements were really due to weather as officials had suggested, or if they were part of a broader attempt to level the field across both tours. “It’s been prepared like this for a reason,” he said after his opening round in 2024, bluntly dismissing weather explanations as a “bulls*** excuse.” Smith went on to say the course lacked its usual bite and that he couldn’t see it firming up into a real test.

Lucas Herbert backed up Smith’s take. He described it as “sacrilegious” to play Sandbelt golf without the challenge of firm greens and tight pins. “It’s just not the way these courses are designed to be played,” he said, pointing out how players were being forced to attack flags rather than play with the usual strategic caution Sandbelt golf demands.

Even veteran Marc Leishman, typically more reserved, acknowledged that changes were needed. Without the traditional toughness of the Aussie Open, he warned, the event risked losing the respect of the world’s best players.

And now Australia Golf listened to the players finally, with Kooyonga set to host, a refreshed format, and a more LPGA-aligned schedule, will this be the year a homegrown Aussie lifts the Patricia Bridges Bowl again?