Recent off securing her third main title on the Girls’s PGA Championship, Australia’s Minjee Lee has her sights set on the LPGA Corridor of Fame.
Lee gained by three pictures at Fields Ranch East outdoors of US residence of Dallas, Texas, staying rock strong all through the ultimate spherical to make sure she was by no means critically challenged.
The victory, which follows her main triumphs on the 2021 Evian Championship and the 2022 US Girls’s Open, firmly entrenches her as a legend of Australian golf at simply 29 years of age.
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Solely Karrie Webb (seven majors) and Peter Thomson (5 majors) have gained extra main crowns with the Australian flag subsequent to their names, and Lee drew degree with Jan Stephenson by blowing away the sphere on the Girls’s PGA.
Past our shores, Lee has additionally established herself as a modern-day nice.
The Perth product is amongst a bunch of solely 5 energetic LPGA gamers together with Lydia Ko, Yani Tseng, In Gee Chun and Anna Nordqvist to boast a hat-trick of majors.
Solely Tseng with 5 titles, the latest of which got here in 2011, has extra main crowns than Lee.
Her three titles coming at totally different occasions additionally means she is closing in on the profession grand slam.
“I imply, that’s my final objective. I actually need to be within the Corridor of Fame. That’s why I began golf,” she mentioned.
“That’s why I needed to be on the LPGA Tour, to, you understand, win a bunch of tournaments and attempt to get into it.
“Seeing Lydia (Ko) do it, I believe I would love to get there. We’ll see how we go after this week.”
MJ Lee – Full Championship Presentation | 03:53
As ladies’s golf possesses 5 majors, in contrast to the boys’s 4 which Rory McIlroy accomplished at The Masters in April, the LPGA classifies successful 4 separate main tournaments because the profession grand slam, and all 5 because the tremendous profession grand slam.
Webb is the one particular person to have achieved the latter.
The LPGA made the transfer to 5 majors in 2013 however varied tournaments have gained and loss main standing over time.
The Evian Championship, the occasion held in France that was elevated to main standing a dozen years in the past, is subsequent on Lee’s calendar, however three weeks later she could have the possibility to turn out to be a profession grand slam winner with a victory on the Girls’s British Open in Wales.
The Chevron Championship, which is the primary ladies’s main of the 12 months, is the opposite main Lee has not gained however she has been shut, ending tied third or higher at each main match.
As for the Corridor of Fame, 27 factors are wanted for induction with two factors awarded for every main title and one factors for every LPGA title, of which Lee has 11.
Regardless of her illustrious resume, Lee’s newest triumph ended the second longest hole between her LPGA wins – the longest was greater than two years from 2019 to 2021 however that was impacted by the Covid-19 pandemic interruption.
The West Australian had been as excessive as world quantity two lately, however her world rating slipped to twenty fourth initially of this week.
Lengthy thought to be among the best ball-strikers on the planet, Lee was failing to capitalise on the greens.
Her placing points prompted a change to the broomstick putter initially of the 12 months, and scars of a ultimate spherical collapse finally 12 months’s Girls’s US Open lingered.
“It feels fairly superb. I really feel like I actually deserve this one. I put quite a lot of exhausting work into it. Yeah, I really feel actually good,” she mentioned.
Lee added: “I believe it’s very totally different (to her different majors wins), as a result of I really feel like I had quite a lot of doubt the previous few years simply — not with — I suppose with my lengthy sport however extra with my placing.
“I believe the extra I heard media and different folks saying issues about my placing, I believe it received to me increasingly over time.
“Yeah, I believe this one simply means a little bit bit extra to me.
“I imply, clearly U.S. Open is my absolute favorite, however by way of my most deserved I believe this one is the one.”
Webb, Stephenson and present world quantity eight Hannah Inexperienced are the one different Australians to have gained the Girls’s PGA Championship.
Together with Lee, they’re additionally the one Australian ladies to have gained a golf main.
Subsequent 12 months’s match will probably be held in Hazeltine, Minnesota however it can possess an extremely Australian really feel with Lee serving as defending champion and Inexperienced prevailing the final time it was held there in 2019.
“Yeah, it’s simply actually particular,” Lee mentioned.
“I believe it’s solely three different names on this trophy which might be Australian, so I believe it’s such an important privilege to have the ability to have my title with them as nicely.
“Simply I suppose it exhibits the grit of the Aussies. Yeah, simply actually particular. Means loads.”
Lee exhibits that Australian grit day by day as she navigates that grind of life on tour.
She is diligent on the vary, within the fitness center and on the placing inexperienced, specifically, as she has labored day and night time with Perth-based coach Ritchie Smith in latest occasions to unlock better consistency with the flat stick.
Smith additionally coaches Lee’s PGA Tour taking part in little brother Min Woo in addition to Inexperienced and a number of different Australian making waves on excursions throughout the globe, and was with these three gamers together with Jason Day finally 12 months’s Olympics in Paris.
Lee mentioned in her press convention that she doesn’t want she had switched putters sooner as the method of working via totally different kinds, attempting left hand low or left hand excessive received her up to now.
However she additionally pressured that there isn’t any time for complacency with extra time on the telephone with Smith wanted to make sure she is sharp for her subsequent project.
“The subsequent factor is Evian I suppose. That’s my subsequent cease on Tour,” Lee mentioned.
“You already know, I don’t actually set objectives like I’m going to win three majors, attempt to have three wins.
“I simply persist with my processes, and certainly one of my large objectives was to enhance on the placing stats, so I believe I’ve been doing that.
“So I’m simply taking it one step at a time.
“I’m going to take pleasure in this win, after which I’ll sit down with my coach and speak to him on the telephone, see the place we’re going go after this one.”
One other aspect of Lee’s victory is simply the way it would possibly affect her youthful brother.
The siblings usually resemble chalk and cheese.
Min Woo is the extroverted, social media well-known, showman, whereas Minjee is quieter, will go months at a time with out posting on Instagram and ensures she ticks each field alongside the way in which.
Minjee has all the time laid declare to the moniker of greatest golfer within the household, however that has not dispelled any competitiveness between the pair.
Min Woo gained for the primary time on the PGA Tour on the Texas Open because the Lone Star State clearly holds a particular place within the household’s hearts, however he has missed the lower in three of the final 4 majors and he could really feel spurred on by the necessity to sustain together with his sister at The Open Championship subsequent week.
“Yeah, as an expert golfer we put a lot time and our effort into perfecting our sport. I really feel like Min Woo has actually matured over time and is determining what works greatest for him on tour, like his schedule, simply even apply,” Minjee mentioned.
“I believe he’s grown up loads. I like to see his journey and the way nicely he’s doing on the PGA.
“I’m a veteran on the LPGA; 11 years appears like a very long time, so I really feel like I’ve extra routine down pat now. Like I do know what I’m doing. I simply must, you understand, do what I do know greatest and attempt to replicate that each week.
“So it’s simply actually nice to see Min Woo doing good within the States, on the PGA TOUR as nicely.”