30 Jan 2025 | Professional golf |
Aussies on Tour: Return of the Lees
by Martin Blake
![Min Woo Lee image](http://images.ctfassets.net/3urhge2ecl20/6qp3Ai7gxWxX73AsCTYrEq/8c90da02a398577a47e4e3e183fb4ddc/minga.png)
As Min Woo Lee makes his PGA Tour debut for 2025 on the glorious Monterey Peninsula this week his famous sister Minjee steps out trialling a piece of equipment that could make or break her future.
Min Woo Lee is teeing it up alongside three other Australians in the $US20 million AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am in California with high hopes.
Both Pebble Beach and Spyglass Hill courses are in play for the ‘signature’ event.
His two runner-up finishes in his first full season and $US2.6 million in earnings were easily enough to retain his card in America but the Royal Fremantle product will not be satisfied yet.
At 26 years of age and ranked 53rd in the world, Lee will see this as a big year for him.
He is already in the field for the Masters at Augusta National in April, but has not yet qualified for the Open Championship at Royal Portrush.
Meanwhile Minjee Lee will use her new, broomstick-style putter for the first time as the LPGA Tour resumes for 2025 at the Tournament of Champions in Florida.
The former world No. 2 and dual major champion had her worst season for some time by her own high standards in 2024, and growing frustration at her patchy short putting has led to a significant change over the summer. Her world ranking has fallen to No. 19 having twice reached No. 2 (in 2019 and 2022).
She has been working hard at home in Perth with coach Ritchie Smith but this week at Lake Nona will be the first time we get to see the new equipment in play under tournament conditions.
Hannah Green, who overtook Lee as Australia’s top-ranked player last year, is also in the field in Florida where Kiwi Lydia Ko is the defending champion.
Tournament season is now in full swing with 10 Australasians competing in the Asian Tour’s International Series in India this week. Tee times PGA TOUR
AT&T Pebble Beach Pro Am Pebble Beach Golf Links and Spyglass Hill, California 4.01am * Cam Davis 4.53am * Adam Scott 5.19am Jason Day 5.32am Min Woo Lee Past champion: Wyndham Clark Past Aussie winners: Brett Ogle 1993, Bruce Crampton 1965 Prize money: $US20m TV times: Live 4am-11am Friday-Saturday; Live 3am-11am Sunday, 2am-10.30am Monday on Fox Sports 503 and Kayo.
LPGA Tour Hilton Grand Vacations Tournament of Champions Lake Nona Golf & Country Club, Florida 12.43 am Hannah Green 1.16am Lydia Ko (NZ) 2.55am Minjee Lee Past champion: Nelly Korda Past Aussie winners: Lydia Ko (NZ) 2024, Prize money: $US2m TV times: Live 3.30am-6.30am Friday, Saturday ; Live 6am-9am Saturday ; Live 5am-8am Monday on Fox Sports 505 and Kayo.
DP World Tour Bahrain Championship Royal GC, Kingdom of Bahrain 3.10pm * Daniel Hillier (NZ) 3.45pm Jason Scrivener 4.10pm Kazuma Kobori (NZ) 7.10pm Elvis Smylie 8.30pm David Micheluzzi Past champion: Dylan Frattelli Past Aussie winners: nil Prize money: €2.5m TV times: Live 7.30pm-12.30am Thursday, Friday; Live 8.30pm-12.30pm Saturday, Sunday on Fox Sports 503 and Kayo.
Asian Tour International Series India DLF Golf and Country Club, Gurugram, India 12.35pm Jack Buchanan 12.45pm Jack Thompson 12.45pm * Wade Ormsby 1.05 * Travis Smyth 1.15pm Maverick Antcliff 1.25 * Kevin Yuan 1.25 * Nick Voke (NZ) 1.35pm Jed Morgan 6.05pm Aaron Wilkin 7.25pm * Scott Hend Past champion: Inaugural event Past Aussie winners: nil Prize money: $US2m TV times: Live 7pm-11pm Thursday, Friday; Live 5.30pm-9.30pm Saturday, Sunday on Fox Sports 507 and Kayo.
Korn Ferry Tour Panama Championship, Club de golf, Panama 9.30am * Brett Drewitt 8.40am * Rhein Gibson 4.10am Harry Hillier (NZ) Past champion: Isaiah Salinda Aussie winners: Mathew Goggin 2011, 2015 Prize money: $US1m
HotelPlanner Tour MyGolfLife Open hosted by Pecanwood Estate, South Africa 3.40pm * Danny List (NZ) 5.10pm Sam Jones (NZ) 5.30pm * Haydn Barron 9.10pm Hayden Hopewell Past champion: inaugural event Aussie winners: nil Prize money: $US1m
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