Minjee Lee struggled for a bit on Sunday at the Upper Montclair Country Club but by the final six holes, she summoned enough to outlast Lexi Thompson at the LPGA Tour’s Founders Cup.
“Hard work,” was how Lee summed up her afternoon. “I wasn’t really nervous even though I didn’t strike it that well. I’m really, really happy — at the end of the day — I got the job done.”
She got the job done and won for the first time this season. She gave hope to Thompson, Madelene Sagstrom and Angel Yin when she turned in one-over par. But three birdies coming home put her in the winner’s circle.
“I just feel like I’ve kind of been trending,” said Lee, who also has a tie for second and a tie for third among her seven starts this year. “I’ve been hitting it really, really well this whole — I mean, this whole season, and I just felt like it was kind of around the corner. I kept knocking on the door, and here I am now.”
Thompson, who hasn’t won since 2019, found herself within a shot standing on the 18th tee with Lee. Thompson’s drive missed the fairway left while Lee was in perfect position in the short grass. It was then that Lee stuff her approach to four feet to ice the victory. She made the closing birdie for a two-under par 20 and a 19-under par total — two clear of Thompson (69), three better than Yin (67) and Sagstrom (69).
This was Lee’s first win since the Evian, where she won her first major championship. “I was actually quite calm the whole day,” Lee said. “My emotion was actually quite just very, very level, so it was just nice just to win. I think that’s why I celebrated.”
The LPGA Tour’s next event is its match play tournament that starts in Las Vegas on May 25. Most of the top players will wait and show up for the Women’s U.S. Open that starts on June 2 at Pine Needles in Southern Pines, N.C.
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