Playing internationally from 1973 to 1996, Whytcross won 3 WTA doubles titles and was runner-up with Naoko Satō at the 1978 Australian Open.

In singles, she achieved her best Grand Slam result at Roland Garros in 1977, where she reached the third round.

She reached her first WTA doubles final in Sydney in January 1974 but had to wait four years before reaching her second at Mahwah, New Jersey in 1978 with partner Barbara Potter.. Also in 1978, she achieved her best Grand Slam result, advancing to the final of the Australian Open in 1978 with partner Naoko Satō, where they lost to Betsy Nagelsen and Renáta Tomanová.

Whytcross subsequently won three WTA doubles titles in 1983, taking titles at the Head Cup in Kitzbühel, Austria in July 1983(with Chris Newton), and in successive weeks in October at two tournaments in Tokyo: the Japan Open and the Borden Classic, (both with Chris O'Neil) and qualified for the year-ending WTA Doubles championships in that year.

The award recognises an individual who personifies leadership, sportsmanship and goodwill while making a major contribution to the stature of tennis.