Royal Wellington Gearing Up for WAAP

Wellington, New Zealand: Royal Wellington Golf Club will host the eighth edition of the Women’s Amateur Asia-Pacific (WAAP) championship from February 12-15, 2026, bringing together the region’s elite women amateur golfers competing for starts in three Major championships.

Developed by The R&A and Asia-Pacific Golf Confederation (APGC), the championship provides a pathway to the international stage, with the champion earning life-changing opportunities to play in the AIG Women’s Open, The Amundi Evian Championship and The Chevron Championship.

The champion will also gain starts in the Hana Financial Group Championship, ISPS Handa Australian Open, The 123rd Women’s Amateur Championship and an invitation to play in the Augusta National Women’s Amateur.

These opportunities represent a direct pathway from amateur golf to the world stage, with Thailand’s Atthaya ‘Jeeno’ Thitikul, the inaugural WAAP champion, now a five-time LPGA Tour winner and the current world number one.

Other ex-WAAP participants have also gone on to win five Major championships in just eight years. Japan’s Yuka Saso, joint runner-up to Jeeno in 2018, has captured two US Women’s Open titles with fellow 2018 competitor Patty Tavatanakit of Thailand winning The Chevron Championship and Japan’s Ayaka Furue winning the 2024 Amundi Evian Championship. Australian Grace Kim, a participant in 2019, won the Amundi Evian Championship this year.

Royal Wellington is expecting to receive 10,000 spectators across the four-day championship, with the ambitious goal reflecting both the significance of the championship and the club’s commitment to creating an incredible experience for fans.

To support a fun family-fun atmosphere, the club will establish the ‘Royal Village’ – a dedicated spectator hub offering a range of food and beverage options, family activities and She Loves Golf activations.

Royal Wellington General Manager Dylan Lindstrom said: “This is a rare opportunity for Kiwis to watch the future stars of world golf compete on New Zealand soil. The Royal Village concept transforms the championship into more than just a sporting event – it will create a welcoming, inclusive environment where families can spend the day enjoying world-class golf in a relaxed, festival-style setting.

“We want to create an experience that appeals to everyone – from serious golf fans to families looking for a great day out. The Royal Village will be the heart of that experience.”

Beyond the elite competition, the championship continues its vision to support the development of young golfers in countries throughout the region via the Women’s Amateur Asia-Pacific Academy. 

Launched in 2025, it provides players from emerging golfing nations with access to world-class coaching – opportunities more regularly available to players from established golfing nations like Australia, Japan, New Zealand and Korea.

The second Academy cohort took place at Royal Wellington last week and focused on the Pacific Islands region, with invited players from Fiji, Guam, Papua New Guinea and Samoa also being joined by participants from the Philippines, Malaysia, Singapore and Sri Lanka.

The New Zealand contingent includes three representatives from the NZ Māori Golf Association – Rebekah Blackwell-Chin, Hunter Edwards and Tania Ellis – alongside two promising young players from Royal Wellington: 12-year-old Amy Yu and 13-year-old Elise Barber.

Throughout the week-long Academy, the players worked with an experienced coaching team including Technical Director John Crampton (sport psychology), Scott Barr (short game), Andrew Welsford (swing technique), Ryan Lumsden (Trackman data analysis) and NZCIS (strength and conditioning).

The players also had the chance to stay and train at the New Zealand Campus of Innovation and Sport, a world class all-purpose facility in the Upper Hutt.

By combining high-level championship play with targeted development support, the WAAP aims to build a long-term pathway for women’s golf across the entire Asia-Pacific region.

Dominic Wall, Regional Managing Director – Asia-Pacific at The R&A, said: “The Women’s Amateur Asia-Pacific Academy is an important investment in the future of our sport. By providing world-class coaching and meaningful opportunities to players from emerging golfing nations, we are helping to ensure that talent from every corner of the region has a genuine pathway to succeed.

“The Academy reflects our commitment to strengthening the women’s sport across Asia-Pacific and inspiring the next generation to believe that they belong on the international stage.”