Lee Kyoung-hoon "First PGA Tour Runner-up"... 'Major Killer' Koepka's Comeback

Phoenix Open Final Day 3-Under Par 'Historic Performance', Kepka's Two Eagles 'Come-From-Behind Victory', Spieth Finishes 4th

Lee Kyung-hoon is teeing off on the 2nd hole on the final day of the Phoenix Open. Scottsdale, Arizona, USA = Getty Images / Multibits Photo by Getty Images

[Asia Economy Kim Hyun-jun, Golf Specialist Reporter] "A historic performance."

Lee Kyoung-hoon (30, CJ Logistics) secured his first runner-up finish on the PGA Tour. On the 8th (Korean time) at the Waste Management Phoenix Open (total prize money $7.3 million) held at Scottsdale TPC (Par 71, 7,261 yards) in Scottsdale, Arizona, USA, he added a 3-under-par on the final day to finish tied for 2nd place (18-under-par 266). Brooks Koepka (USA) clinched a come-from-behind victory (19-under-par 265). This marks Lee’s 8th career win, his first in 1 year and 7 months since the 2019 FedEx St. Jude Invitational in July, with a winner’s prize of $1,314,000 (14.76 billion KRW).

Lee started tied for 3rd and recorded 4 birdies and 1 bogey. He opened the scoring early with a birdie on the 2nd hole (par 4), but after a stretch of 8 consecutive pars, a missed tee shot on the 11th hole (par 4) led to a bogey, slowing his momentum. Fortunately, he bounced back with three ‘stepping stone birdies’ on holes 13, 15, and 17 in the back nine, climbing back to 2nd place. Koepka sealed his win spectacularly with a 32-yard chip shot eagle on the 17th hole (par 4).

Lee Kyoung-hoon was the gold medalist in the team golf event at the 2010 Guangzhou Asian Games. He moved to Japan, where he earned two wins: the 2012 Nagashima Shigeo and the 2015 Honma Tour World Cup. In 2016 and 2017, he achieved the remarkable feat of winning the Korean Open, considered Korea’s national title, back-to-back. In 2018, ranked 5th on the Korn Ferry Tour money list, he advanced to the PGA Tour in 2019, maintaining his card for two consecutive years and gradually approaching the winner’s circle.

In this tournament, he notably competed for the title against world stars throughout all four days, achieving his best PGA Tour result, surpassing his tied 3rd place at the 2019 Zurich Classic. His ‘pinpoint iron shots’ stood out, with a 100% greens in regulation rate on the first day. His four-round average was 84.72%. Lee said, "The swing correction for my iron shots, which sometimes overuses my hands, has shown positive effects," and added, "I definitely want to win next time," showing his fighting spirit.

Brooks Koepka is cheering while holding the trophy immediately after winning the Phoenix Open. Scottsdale, Arizona, USA = Getty Images / Multibits

Locally, the spotlight was on Koepka’s resurgence. The former world No. 1 swept three wins this season, including successfully defending his title at the PGA Championship in May 2019, the first to do so in 12 years. It was surprising that his presence had diminished after knee surgery in December and subsequent treatment and rehabilitation. However, on this day, he unleashed a maximum 320.10-yard drive and fired two eagles on the 3rd hole (par 5) and the 17th hole, finishing with a 6-under-par round.

Jordan Spieth’s (USA) ‘rollercoaster play’ became a hot topic off the course. After a 10-under-par daily best the previous day that catapulted him to the top of the leaderboard, he faltered with a 1-over-par round, finishing tied for 4th (17-under-par 267). ‘Number 2’ Jon Rahm (Spain), Justin Thomas (USA), and Rory McIlroy (Northern Ireland) all tied for 13th place (13-under-par 271). South Korea’s Im Sung-jae (23) finished tied for 17th (12-under-par 272), Kim Si-woo (26) tied for 50th (7-under-par 277), and An Byeong-hun (30, all CJ Logistics) tied for 53rd (6-under-par 279).

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.