Published on October 8, 2024

Macau Golf & Country Club did exceptionally well in handling the devastating aftereffects of Typhoon Koinu that passed over the area on Monday of the SJM Macau Open week a year ago, but it had to kneel and bow to the brute force that was Typhoon Lee.

Min Woo Lee was sensational in winning the tournament that has remained one of the most popular stops of the Tour since 1998 but was resuscitated after a gap of five years because of the pandemic.

The 25-year-old Australian phenom started in the most inauspicious manner – making a bogey on his first hole itself. The 411-yard, par-four 10th hole of Macau Golf & Country Club would trouble him later as well when he dropped another shot there in Saturday’s third round.

However, apart from those two bogeys, nothing bothered the uber-talented Perth resident. On a course drenched by the buckets of rain dumped by Koinu, the long-hitting Lee was unstoppable as he racked up three eagles and 26 birdies in the remaining 70 holes, cruising to a tournament-record total of 30-under-par.

Lee’s four-day effort was just two short of the Asian Tour all-time scoring record of 32-under, set by Thailand’s Chapchai Nirat at the SAIL Open in 2009, and 10 shots better than Scott Hend’s all-time best Macau Open winning total of 20-under par in 2015.

It was his first Asian Tour title, beating a dogged Poom Saksansin by two shots. The unassuming Thai star, who has made it a habit of chasing superstars and battling them down the stretch, was snapping at Lee’s heels until the bitter end, before finishing at 28-under-par – eight shots better than his third-placed compatriot Phachara Khongwatmai (20-under par).

Despite preferred lies in play on the short course (6,606 yards, par 71), it was a remarkable performance from the top-two and came in contrasting fashion. Lee dazzled with his 190 miles per hour ball speed that helped him surmount just about every challenge off the tee. Poom, one of the shortest hitters on Tour with an average driving distance of 262.5 yards, was armed with laser-guided irons and making almost every putt he faced. Together, they simply ran away from the field.

Poom made a total of 32 birdies but would eventually rue the fact that two of his four bogeys came on par-five holes in Saturday’s third round.

Scotland’s David Drysdale matched Lee’s nine-under-par 62 on the opening day, but the Australian seized the sole lead on Friday with a bogey-free 64 and never looked back.

Lee had arrived in Macau as the highest-ranked player in the world at number 46 and lived up to the pre-tournament hype. The performance kickstarted a brilliant end to his year as he then went home and won the Fortinet Australian PGA Championship and was third at the ISPS Handa Australian Open. It also broke a title drought of more than two years and two months when he won the 2021 Scottish Open and helped him finish the year ranked 33rd in the Official World Golf Ranking.

“I played wonderful, really flawless golf for a lot of the holes, there were only a few holes that I could really look back on. But yeah, I’m really proud of the way I handled myself,” said Lee, popularly known as ‘The Chef’ and a massive favourite with Gen Z.

“As soon as the week started, I had a couple of days rest because of the typhoon, and the course was looking amazing from the beginning. Obviously, it was pretty bad for a couple of days there, so it was props to the green keepers for keeping the course in such good condition.

“Poom played unbelievable – he’s a bad son of gun! He never left, he just stayed around. I tried my best and ended up on top, but he was giving it to me for the whole time.”

Poom, who won the Yeangder TPC in September to end a five-year-long title drought, was also tied third in International Series Singapore. The 30-year-old has repeatedly made a mockery of reputations in the past – including pulling off a sensational fourball win over Henrik Stenson and Alexander Levy in the 2018 EurAsia Cup single-handedly and then beating Paul Casey in the singles – but his terrific form was still not enough to get him past Lee.

“I don’t know when I’ll be able to putt like this again. I would say that I played very well today but needed a miracle to win. I would have to hit at least 10-under to win. Lee is a very good player. He hits it very far and had a very good game plan. His chipping and putting are awesome. He should have been better than 30-under par,” said Poom.

Chinese-Taipei’s Lee Chieh-po (63) and Philippines’ Miguel Tabuena (65) were tied fourth at 18-under.

A fascinating side story of the tournament was the performance of American Jason Knutzon. The 2004 champion finished tied sixth at 17-under, despite playing his first professional event after a gap of five years. The 47-year-old, now a teaching professional back home in Des Moines, Iowa, started with two rounds of 68 each, before adding a 66 and a 65 over the weekend.

“I would say I am incredibly happy. I had no expectations for the week,” said Knutzon, who also revealed he did not have the best build-up for the tournament after falling sick for a couple of weeks before flying.