The Vic Open is one of the leading Australian golf events where men and women play on the same courses, at the same time, for equal prize money.

In a format unique to world professional golf, the Vic Open titles are simultaneously staged over 72-holes stroke play at the 13th Beach Golf Links on the Bellarine Peninsula during early February with respective starting fields of 156 players.

The Men’s Open has been the pinnacle event in Victorian men’s golf since being first played at Riversdale in 1957 with the inaugural title won by Australian golfing legend, Ossie Pickworth.

Many world-famous players have claimed the men’s title including Australia’s five-time British Open winner, Peter Thomson (1958, 1968 and 1973); South Africa’s Gary Player (1959); Bruce Devlin (1962 and 1963); Kel Nagle (1967 and 1969); David Graham (1970); Greg Norman (1984) and Robert Allenby (1991).

The Women’s Championship was first played in 1988 but experienced a 20-year hiatus after the 1992 event. In order to provide an equivalent elite event for Victorian women’s golf; stimulate participation/promotion of the game to the entire Victorian community and highlight Golf Victoria’s role as the peak body for men’s and women’s golf in the State, the Women’s Open title was reintroduced in 2012.

The Championship was simultaneously staged with the Men’s Open at the Spring Valley and Woodlands Golf Clubs over 54-holes in January 2012 and was a resounding success.

In 2013, the Championship moved to 13th Beach Golf Links and successfully grew further both in terms of media interest and prizemoney, while attracting high quality fields and thousands of spectators.

The fields play simultaneously over the Beach and Creek Courses for the opening two rounds. Following a ‘cut’ after the opening 36-holes, the qualifying men’s and women’s players progress to the third and final rounds on the Beach course.

All rounds of the Championship see alternate groups of men’s and women’s players, culminating with the leading group of men and leading group of women following each other onto the 18th hole to conclude the Championship on Sunday.

The Men’s winner holds the Men’s Open Championship Cup for one year while the Women’s winner holds the Women’s Open Salver. Prize money peaked at $1.5 million each for the Men’s and Women’s championships – a total prize pool of $3 million – in 2019 and 2020 when the Vic Open enjoyed co-sanctioning status with the LPGA Tour and Men’s European Tour.