A dramatic final round on Sunday at the Texas Children’s Houston Open finished up with a new face in the winner’s circle on the PGA Tour.
Australia’s Min Woo Lee recovered from a late stumble, making clutch pars on Nos. 17 and 18 to win the Houston Open for his first career PGA Tour win. Lee, who finished at 20-under-par, held off a furious charge to win by one stroke over Scottie Scheffler and Gary Woodland.
“To be honest, I played unbelievable up until that bogey [on 16],” Lee said after the round. “It’s hard, it’s really hard. Scottie is obviously a wonderful golfer, he always keeps you on your toes. This is my first time in front trying to hold a lead.
“I am very exhausted. I am so proud of how I handled myself.”
Lee’s 20-under 260 is the lowest score in the 77-year history of the Houston Open. He came out on top after a wild week that saw the course record tied three times — by Scheffler on Friday and by Woodland and fourth-place finisher Sami Valimaki on Sunday.
Lee didn’t get to that 62 mark in a single round, but his consistent ability to find birdies paid off throughout the week. Sunday’s 67 was his highest score of the week after he took control with a 6-under 64 in Friday’s second round and a 7-under 63 on Saturday.
This win will feel like a weight lifted off the shoulder for Lee, who came into this event after a pair of discouraging performances in his last two tournaments.
The Perth native missed the cut at the Arnold Palmer Invitational at Bay Hill with a score of 7-over par. He appeared to rebound at The PLAYERS Championship, even teeing off in the final group on Saturday before a 78-73 finish to end up tied for 20th.
Now, just two weeks after walking off the course at TPC Sawgrass, Lee is a PGA Tour Champion for the first time.
“A bit of a kick-in-the-butt [last couple tournaments],” he said. “I wasn’t even supposed to be in this tournament so thank you to my manager for adding it to my schedule.”
Lee was the likely winner coming into Sunday’s final round, leading by four shots after 54 holes. However, Scheffler and Woodland both got hot on the back nine and provided plenty of drama for golf fans everywhere.
After Scheffler had made three consecutive birdies on Nos. 13, 14 and 15 to cut Lee’s lead to just three, Scheffler reached the par-5 16th in two with another great birdie chance. Behind him, Lee sliced his drive out to the right and into the water.
He made bogey as Scheffler made his fourth-straight birdie at 16 to get within one shot. While the No. 1-ranked player in the world made par on the last two holes, Woodland vaulted himself into the conversation with an incredible iron shot on the last to make a birdie of his own.
Holding onto the one-shot lead over both chasers, Lee steadied himself after that shaky 16th tee shot. He two-putted for par on No. 17 from just off the green before a rock-solid 18th, making another par to get the win.
With this victory, Lee and his older sister Minjee Lee are the third brother-sister pair to both get wins on the PGA and LPGA Tours, joining Cathy and Bill Kratzert and Jackie and Jim Gallagher Jr., per Justin Ray.
After the round, the fan-favorite on tour punctuated his on-course interview with a signature catchphrase.
“Let him cook.”
Lee should now take plenty of confidence into The Masters, which gets underway on Thursday, April 10. Coming off of his first win, he will feel like he can compete with anybody at the first major of the season.
If he keeps cooking like he did in Houston, anything is on the table for the talented 26-year-old.
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