By Neal Maidment
WA’s Min Woo Lee found his best form to fire a closing 66 at the PGA Tour’s Honda Classic to storm up the leaderboard and safeguard his place in the world’s top 50.
Lee’s magnificent final round at Palm Beach Gardens propelled him more than 30 places up the leaderboard to maintain his top-50 ranking in 50th position. As a result, he earned a place in the field for The Players Championship at TPC Sawgrass from March 9-12. It will be Lee’s first appearance in the so-called “fifth Major”.
Immediately prior to that, Lee has a chance to further fine-tune his game after his ranking secured him an exemption for this week’s Arnold Palmer Invitational at Bay Hill – another of the PGA Tour’s most prestigious events. All in all, it’s an exciting few weeks in store for the 24-year-old – as his latest Tweet suggests!
Sneaky Sunday charge (Tied 58th to Tied 26) & Huge news! 🚨Got into the Players Championship from being in the Top 50 World Ranking after this weeks tournament. So pumped! Big two weeks ahead. Arnold Palmer Invitational up next. Lets fricking go!! 🔥🙏🏼 #Process pic.twitter.com/loPxJl7j2d
— Min Woo Lee (@Minwoo27Lee) February 27, 2023
Another WA pro with a big few weeks ahead is Kirsten Rudgeley, who makes her full debut on the Ladies’ European Tour at this week’s Joburg Ladies Open. The Mount Lawley golfer enjoyed a stellar amateur career before turning pro late last year and earning fully exempt status on the LET at Qualifying School in November.
Rudgeley has been in solid form so far in 2023, finishing no lower than T11 in three events on the WPGA Tour of Australasia. She will play in three consecutive LET events in March, two in South Africa and one in Singapore.
Speaking to GolfWA earlier this year, Rudgeley said: “I’m not putting too much pressure on myself, but I’ve got to play every tournament the best I can to get up the money list and to build my confidence. I’m training harder in the gym, and working on fine-tuning the weaker areas of my game.”
Rudgeley was named in the Golf Australia Rookie Squad earlier this month, which is an initiative aimed at helping new professionals successfully transition into life on tour.
You can keep up to date with the latest successes from WA elite golfers via the GolfWA news section and our Facebook, Insta and Twitter accounts. You can also subscribe to our monthly e-newsletter here.
Image credit: Australian Golf Media
