Lee rallies for first PGA victory
WITH HIS WIN, THE SOUTH KOREAN EARNS A SPOT IN THIS WEEK’S PGA CHAMPIONSHIP
MCKINNEY, TEX. • South Korean Kyoung-hoon Lee won his first PGA Tour event on Sunday, shooting a 66 for a 4-stroke win at the AT&T Byron Nelson.
The 29-year-old Lee entered the day in second, one shot behind 54-hole leader Sam Burns, but put the pressure on his playing partner immediately. He birdied five of the first eight holes at TPC Craig Ranch before a bogey at No. 9, then added three birdies and a bogey on the back nine.
A birdie at No. 17 gave him a three-stroke lead and breathing room on the final hole, putting the topping on the tournament with a birdie at No. 18 for a 25-under 263 for the tournament.
Whatever he had rehearsed to celebrate his first win was lost in the moment.
“Before a lot of imagine when I win, like what is that,” he said through a translator. “Like, yeah, like fist pump or I imagine a lot of things, but too excited over there. Almost forget everything.
“So excited, yeah.” With the win, Lee earned a spot in this week’s PGA Championship at the Ocean Course at Kiawah Island, S.C.
After shooting rounds of 65-62-69, Burns could muster only a 2-under 70 on Sunday to finish in second, three shots back, at 22 under. The four-foot putt for birdie on the final hole moved him out of a five-way tie and into second on his own.
Behind Lee and Burns in a tie for third were four players, including two who made a big rise up the leaderboard on Sunday. Patton Kizzire fired the day’s low round, a 9-under 63, to climb 23 places on the day, while Daniel Berger shot a 64 to move up from 18th place. Scott Stallings (66) and South African Charl Schwartzel (68) also finished in the tie.
Burns was going for his second win this month after winning the Valspar Championship on May 2.
Despite the second-place finish, Burns was happy with the results.
“I think the biggest thing for me is just knowing my game is in a good place. It’s in a good spot enough to where I can contend,” the 24-year-old from Louisiana said. “So that’s cool for me, just to see some results for some of the stuff I been working on back home. “All in all, a great week.” Roger Sloan of Calgary finished at -13, while Michael Gligic of Burlington, Ont., was -11.