Golf Australia Ends Mixed Format for Australian Open in 2025

Golf Australia has announced that the men’s and women’s Australian Open golf tournaments will no longer be held concurrently, reverting to separate events from 2025 onwards.

This decision follows an annual review by Golf Australia and comes after significant criticism from players regarding the mixed-gender format.

Since 2022, the Australian Open has been staged as a dual-gender event, with both tournaments played at the same venues. However, the logistics and conditions of this format were met with resistance from key figures in the sport.

Prominent players such as Cameron Smith voiced their concerns, particularly regarding the course setups. Smith criticized the soft and slow conditions at courses like Kingston Heath, stating that the course had been altered to accommodate both the men’s and women’s events, which, in his view, compromised the traditional style of play.

World No.6 Hannah Green and other female players also expressed dissatisfaction with the concurrent scheduling, citing challenges such as the lack of adequate practice time and the altered course conditions. Green, among others, called for the women’s event to be moved to an earlier time in the year to better align with the LPGA Tour schedule.

In response to these concerns, Golf Australia has decided to separate the events moving forward. The men’s Australian Open will retain its traditional November-December timeframe, while the women’s tournament is expected to return to its previous March slot, beginning in 2026.

James Sutherland, Golf Australia’s chief executive, defended the experiment with dual-gender events, acknowledging the achievements of the past three years, including strong crowd attendance and broadcast viewership.

“We are proud of what has been achieved over the past three years with mixed-gender Australian Opens, together with the All-Abilities championship,” Sutherland said.

“With record crowds and broadcast audiences there is a lot to be pleased about. Our long-term event strategy is to build the profile of our tournaments and to showcase the game at the highest level.”

The venue and specific dates for the 2025 tournaments have not yet been finalized, though it is anticipated that the men’s event will continue to be held at golf courses within the Victorian sandbelt.