Australian Min Woo Lee finally won his first tournament on the PGA Tour at the 2025 Texas Children’s Houston Open.
The venue, Memorial Park Golf Course, one of the best public courses in Texas, isn’t short at over 7400 yards.
To increase the difficulty, the course played to a par of 70 for the tournament, instead of its usual par of 72, turning a couple of par 5s into long par 4s.
Despite the course being lengthened and par reduced by two, players still managed to shoot course-record-tying 62s during the week.
Min Woo Lee shot 64-63 in the second and third rounds, vaulting him into a comfortable lead heading into the final day.
That he shot 67 on the last day and finished at 20-under par and still just snuck a win by one shot tells you how good the competition was.
All credit goes to Min Woo for keeping calm despite world number 1 Scottie Scheffler and US Open winner Gary Woodland giving chase.
Lee was leading comfortably by as many as 5 shots in the back 9. Starting the final round leading by 4, Min Woo increased his lead early on the round. But the chasing pack got hot, with Woodland just two back, McIlory and Scheffler not far behind.
The eventual champion showed great resilience, with timely birdies at the 9th, 12th, and 13th, along with excellent scrambling for pars, keeping the chasers at bay.
One errant drive on the par-5 16th, however, made things more interesting, leaving Lee with a one-stroke lead and two holes to play. A crucial lag putt on the last from over 50 feet settled inches away and secured Min Woo the win, his first on the PGA Tour, and the fulfillment of all that potential.
Min Woo Lee has been making waves with his prodigious length, raw talent, and social media influence in the last few years.
Even his sister, multiple major winner Minjee Lee admits that her brother is far more talented than her.
But Min Woo hasn’t quite translated that into wins.
This week’s win almost didn’t happen for him if not for a few clutch shots down the stretch.
So how difficult is it to win on the PGA Tour?
If you ask Min Woo, it’s extremely challenging, and even good scores often aren’t enough.
The talent on tour is just so deep, that’s why it seems unthinkable that there are a few who can keep winning and keep beating the best in the world.
It takes more than distance and talent.
It takes the strongest will and the best at controlling the “six inches between the ears,” as Lee pointed out in his interview.
Mental toughness and patience are likely the most important factors, along with a bit of luck.
There are so many players knocking week in and week out.
Players like Fleetwood, Justin Thomas and Collin Morikawa have come close in recent weeks.
Heading into the Masters next week, it will again take more than good play and consistency to win.
Consistently good playing can get you in contention each week, but breaking through takes a bit more, especially in a major, especially at Augusta National.
Min Woo proved he can compete with the best, but can he do it consistently and at the majors? That remains to be seen.