Minjee Lee won her 10th career win at the BMW Ladies Championship after a play-off against Alison Lee. This was a rematch from the 2012 U.S. Junior Girls’ final which Minjee won as well.
The 27-year old Australian said, “I felt like this was familiar.”
Minjee was the fifth player to win more than one title this season when she made a birdie of 6 feet on the first additional hole. Alison Lee is an American who was a top amateur and has yet to win her first LPGA title. Minjee won the Cincinnati Kroger Queen City Championship back in September.
Minjee said, “Of all the places I wanted to visit, Korea was at the top of the list. My parents are Koreans and I am Korean by heritage.” It was great to see my extended family, friends, and family cheering me on today. It was wonderful that I won today.”
Minjee’s victory earned her $330,000, giving her $1.552,475 in earnings for the year. This is her second win in three starts. She joins Jan Stephenson (16) & Karrie Webb (41), as the third Australian player to reach double-digit tour victories.
Minjee, who is a two-time major champion and has won each of her three LPGA seasons to date, closed with a 4-under-68 at Seowon Hills Country Club in Seowon Valley Country Club, finishing at 16 under. Alison, an ex UCLA star, birdied both her final two holes to shoot 67.
Alison said, “I can’t help but think about the small mistakes I may have made. I feel like I’m doing so well. I’ve had so many putts lip out this week.”
Lydia Ko, who was playing at a sponsor’s invitation, shot a third consecutive round of 69 and finished third, just two strokes behind. Ko’s season has largely been one of struggle, as she hadn’t cracked the top 10 in Thailand since February.
Ko, the BMW winner of last year, said: “I felt that I had been moving in a positive direction. But the results didn’t reflect this.” This week’s results are a good confirmation that the sport is not yet dead.
Angel Yin of the United States, who won her LPGA title in Shanghai last week, finished fourth with a 67.
Ashleigh Buhai, from South Africa, was tied with Minjee in the final round at 12 under. However, she dropped to 13th place after shooting a final-round score of 74. Buhai won $10,000 in unofficial prize money for breaking the BMW scoring record in the first round with a 10-under 62.
