As well as a host of Australia’s top tour professionals, the WA Open offers a great platform for the state’s leading amateurs.
This year’s event will feature a minimum of six WA amateurs, with several more hoping to earn their spots in the field through Pre-Qualifying on Monday, October 12.
And if you think amateur golfers are just there to make up the numbers, think again. The WA Open has seen multiple amateurs lift the Roy Paxton Bowl over the years – including Ollie Goss (2012), Curtis Luck (2016), Zach Murray (2018) and Hayden Hopewell (2020) in recent memory.
Here, we showcase the half dozen rising stars already exempt into the event…
George Barclay
The Joondalup Country Club member is a seasoned competitor at the highest levels of the amateur game in Australia, with multiple ranking titles to his name, both on WA soil and interstate.
The reigning Australian Men’s Order of Merit winner, Barclay won the WA Men’s Amateur Championship in 2024 and has represented the state as a junior and at open-age level since 2023.
An imaginative golfer and engaging personality, Barclay will certainly provide some entertainment for those following his efforts at Secret Harbour.
Zach Capelli
A contemporary – and great friend – of Min Woo Lee from Royal Fremantle, Capelli was being hailed as a seriously hot prospect before crippling back injuries derailed his promising junior career.
At one stage unable to swing a golf club for 20 months, Capelli has nevertheless fought his way back to the top echelons of the amateur game in WA.
Came through qualifying to make the field for the 2025 WA Open at Mount Lawley and played all four rounds at the 2024 championship in Mandurah – missing out on Low Amateur honours after a three-hole playoff against Ollie Marsh.
Josiah Edwards
Possibly the most naturally talented young golfer in Australia, 19-year-old Edwards combines prodigious power with a deft touch around the greens – ingredients that ought to serve him very well at Secret Harbour.
A winner of multiple ranking titles across the nation, the Royal Perth member won the Australian Boys’ Order of Merit in 2023 and has represented both WA and Australia in fine style, both domestically and overseas.
Was in the mix all week at last year’s WA Open before fading on the final day and remains well capable of making headlines again. If he gets on a roll at Secret Harbour, anything could happen.
Spencer Harrison
The WA Open will be one of Harrison’s last tournaments on home soil prior to moving to the United States, where he will be hoping to make a big impact at Tiger Woods’ alma mater, Stanford University, in the US college golf system.
The 18-year-old Royal Perth member is a two-time WA Boys’ Amateur Champion, a state representative at junior and open level, and an Australian international, who is part of Golf Australia’s High Performance Squad.
Made headlines at the 2025 WA Open, when he outscored playing partner Marc Leishman on Day 1 after carding a sublime four-under-par 68. Regardless of how he performs at Secret Harbour, Harrison looks set for a very bright future.
Nate Johnson
The big-hitting lefty will turn 18 during WA Open week having enjoyed something of a meteoric rise over the past three years.
After a soccer injury saw him switch his sporting focus to golf, the Joondalup product won the WA Boys’ Championship in 2023 and wrapped up his domestic junior career in style earlier this month with a dominant display to land the 54-Hole Junior Classic. He also made a memorable run to the final of the 2026 WA Men’s Amateur Championship, where he was narrowly beaten by Adam Baillie.
A WA state representative at junior and open level, Johnson has bags of potential and it would be no surprise to see him play all four rounds at Secret Harbour.
Ollie Marsh
Still only 18, the Wanneroo GC golden boy has the golf résumé of a veteran, having claimed a hatful of significant titles during a highly impressive junior career.
He won the WA Men’s Amateur Championship while only 15 back in 2023 and has won all three of GolfWA’s ‘Junior Majors’ (WA Junior Am, Junior Masters and 54-Hole Junior Classic) twice – including winning all three in 2025.
Just as impressively, Marsh also came through qualifying to earn his place in the 2025 Australian Open at Royal Melbourne, while he won the Terry Gale Trophy for being the Low Amateur at the 2024 WA Open in Mandurah.
The 2026 WA Open takes place at Secret Harbour from October 15-18. Entry is free for spectators all week. Find out full details of the event here.
