Defending champion Jarryd Felton has challenged his fellow male professionals to end the female dominance of the Webex Players Series at this week’s TPS Sydney at Bonnie Doon Golf Club.
The third event of the Webex Players Series that forms part of the ISPS Handa PGA Tour of Australasia, TPS Sydney presented by Webex and hosted by Braith Anasta pits male and female professionals directly against each other, all playing for a share of the $250,000 prize purse.
After Hannah Green’s breakthrough win at TPS Murray River 12 months ago, the women have begun to tip the ledger more their way.
Korean Min A Yoon won TPS Victoria by one stroke from James Marchesani in January while Sarah Jane Smith cruised to a five-stroke win at TPS Murray River two weeks ago.
As the Order of Merit battle heats up, Felton acknowledged that it was time to turn the tables.
“We need to step it up. We can’t have the girls keep winning. We’ll try this week and see how we go,” said Felton, who defeated Brendan Jones in a playoff at Bonnie Doon last year.
“The girls are playing great but so are the guys. You’ve got to shoot 20-plus-under to win right now, which isn’t easy to do on tough golf courses. We’ve seen it the past three or four weeks and the girls are pushing us as well.
“I think it’s great for both. We’re learning to go low and trying to play better.”
Tied for sixth a year ago, Grace Kim is adamant she wants the women to stay on course for a clean sweep. TPS Sydney will be Kim’s final event before embarking on her rookie year on the LPGA Tour in the US and the 22-year-old wants in on the action.
“If a girl wins this week, oh my goodness, that’s just definitely: bow down boys,” Kim joked.
“Rosebud, Min A, just played the lights out. Cobram sort of suits the female game more just because it’s a lot tighter. Bonnie Doon’s a hard one because a lot of the boys can reach the green a lot easier than the girls.
“It’s so nice to see that the two have already been won by girls. Definitely a lot of momentum coming into this week and potentially for the other girls who are playing next week [at TPS Hunter Valley].”
After her stellar amateur career and quick transition into the professional ranks, Kim and coach Khan Pullen have spent the off-season preparing her body for the rigours of a year on tour against the best players in the world. While there have been distance gains off the tee, Kim says the endurance to maintain her swing for an entire round has been the greatest improvement.
“The biggest plan during the off-season was to prioritise me going to the gym and getting stronger to build the stamina to be able to last the tour this year,” said Kim, the runner-up at last week’s Vic Open.
“I definitely tried my hardest to work double the amount of time people were doing and I think it showed last week. I was out-driving a lot of the girls which is great, I wasn’t too physically worn out by the end of the week and I’m quite ready to go for this week.
“Being able to keep my swing speed levels quite consistent throughout the week, that’s already a tick for me.”
In six starts since finishing third at the season-opening WA PGA Championship, Felton has not finished worse than a tie for 28th but no better than a tie for 13th. He is targeting a sharper short game and the memories of his victory last year to produce a strong title defence.
“It’s probably looking back at where you hit shots from and the shots you pulled off,” Felton said of harnessing the memories of his win.
“Staying confident with the shots you were making and the putts that you holed and staying in a good place with some good vibes.
“The holes you birdied are great memories and the holes you made good putts on come back to you.
“I like it out here, obviously the course treated me well last year so hopefully it will do the same thing.”
