Min Woo Lee has become one of the most popular players on tour of late thanks to his eye-catching brand of golf and his attitude on and off the course.
However, he nearly quit the game for good when he was a junior after being put off by the inherent nature of golf and those who played it. After a five-under 65 that vaulted him into contention at the halfway mark of the 2023 US Open, Lee was asked about growing up in Australia and what other sports he played.
"Yeah, I did a lot of sports," Lee said. "I didn't necessarily love golf when I was 10 to 15. I quit when I was 11 to 12 for a year just because I thought it was a boring old men's sport, wear long pants and stuff like that, just the usual.
"But I played basketball, which I really liked, soccer, football, and taekwondo. I did a lot of sports, a lot of fast-paced sports that I enjoyed much more than golf. But there was a tournament that I got selected to play in Australia, and decided that's when I really liked to play golf.
"I loved going overseas and over east and meeting new people. Yeah, I'm pretty talkable, so meet new friends."
Since turning pro in 2019, Lee has become one of the most exciting players to watch and really arrived on people's radars at the Players Championship this year, when he was in the final group on Sunday at TPC Sawgrass alongside eventual winner Scottie Scheffler.
Although he fell back after a closing 76, he predicts that experience will stand him in good stead going into the weekend at the third men's Major of the year.
"I think that was one of the times where I really thought I could actually contend and be there, and I had a couple bad holes at the Players but I really didn't think I was far off," he added.
"Still held it at the end, and yeah, that gave me a lot of confidence for the tournaments coming through. I will definitely lean on to it. Every round I play is something you learn, so just make sure you do learn and don't do them again."
