Minjee Lee of Australia secured her maiden triumph in her parents’ country of origin by winning her tenth career LPGA championship in South Korea.
Born in Perth to Korean parents, Lee won the BMW Ladies Championship on the Seowon Valley Country Club course in Paju by defeating American Alison Lee in the playoffs. With two holes remaining, the 27-year-old was ahead by two strokes, but Alison Lee closed the gap with birdies at the 17th and 18th.
Minjee Lee made pars on the last two holes to send the match into a playoff. Alison Lee missed her putt on the opening playoff hole, the 18th, and the Australian made her birdie to win $330,000.
She had already won once this season at the Kroger Queen City Championship presented by P&G, when she had defeated Charley Hull of England in a two-hole playoff.
After the Shanghai event last week, the LPGA Tour’s Asian swing continues with the tournament in South Korea, the second of four events in the region. After two weeks, the tour travels to Malaysia and Japan.