The tournament’s marquee player, ranked No. 46 in the world, hit crushing drives and holed putt after putt to card an eight-under-par 63 for an astonishing four-round aggregate of 30-under — a new tournament record and two short of the Asian Tour record, although preferred lies were played on the first two days.

Thailand’s Poom Saksansin also fired a 63, like Lee bogey-free, and finished second after a fascinating final day duel between the big-hitting Australian and the tenacious Thai golfer, hoping to replicate one of his giant-killing acts of the past.

Lee started the day with a two-shot lead over Poom and the margin was the same at the turn after both players pulled away from the field playing brilliant golf with four birdies apiece.

The turning point proved to be the par-five 13th, where Lee opened up a four-stroke cushion after he made an eagle, for the second day in row, against Poom’s par.

A wild drive a long way left on the short par-four 15th by Lee gave Poom a glimmer of hope, but his ball stayed away from trouble. He had a clear shot to the green and was able to avert disaster and make a comfortable par.

Predictably Poom refused to submit and made birdies on the next two holes to close the gap to two before they both made four on the par-five 18th.

“I love it,” said 25-year-old Lee, who opened with rounds of 62, 64 and 65. “As soon as the week started I had a couple of days rest because of the typhoon, and the course was looking amazing from the beginning. Obviously, it was pretty bad for a couple of days there, so it was props to the green keepers for keeping the course in such good condition.

“And yeah, I played wonderful, really flawless golf for a lot of the holes, there was only a few holes that I could really look back on. But yeah, I’m really proud of the way I handled myself.”

Lee’s score smashed the event’s previous lowest winning total of 20-under, set by Australian Scott Hend in 2015 and was just two short of the Asian Tour record, which Thailand’s Chapchai Nirat set at the Sail Open in 2009, at the Classic Golf and Country Club in India, when he finished 32-under-par.

Said Lee, who only had two bogeys all week and earned a cheque for $180,000: “Poom played unbelievable today. He never left, he just stayed around. I tried my best and ended up on top, but he was giving it to me for the whole time.”

It is his first victory since claiming the Scottish Open in July of 2021 and while he was winning in Macau, his sister and two-time Major winner Minjee Lee tied for 12th in the Buick LPGA Shanghai.

Main image: Asian Tour

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Poom fired an equally impressive 64 at Macau Golf and Country Club, with Korea’s Jaewoong Eom two back following a 65, thanks to a brilliant eagle on 18.

New Zealand’s Ben Campbell (68) and Meenwhee Kim (69) from Korea are four strokes further adrift.

Playing aggressively and with supreme confidence, 25-year-old Lee, brother of LPGA Tour star Minjee Lee, made an eagle, five birdies and one bogey — which was only his second dropped shot of the week — to put himself in position to win for the first time in two years and claim his maiden Asian Tour title.

He was pushed all the way by playing partner Poom, who in typical Poom fashion drew level with him on the back nine and refused to capitulate.

The diminutive 30-year-old birdied four in a row from the seventh to catch his Australian opponent before Poom handed the lead back when he dropped a shot on 12. Lee went two ahead after a superb eagle on the par-five 13th, where he hit his second to 10 feet and holed out, before a birdie on 15 put him three in front. However, Poom rallied and birdied the last two holes, while Lee also made birdie on 18.

Lee will have his work cut out for him on Sunday as Poom won the Yeangder TPC three weeks ago for his first victory in five years and is known for being a ferocious competitor and giant-killer.

He famously beat England’s Paul Casey in the singles at the 2018 EurAsia Cup and combined with Korean Sunghoon Kang to defeat Henrik Stenson and Alex Levy in a four-ball match 5&4.

And later that year he won the Indonesian Masters for the second time, upstaging the tournament’s two big name players Justin Rose from England and Stenson.

He is also a renowned strong frontrunner having won all four of his Asian Tour titles having led going into the final.

“You know, all the boys that I was playing with they were going pretty hard, so I knew I needed to just keep my composure and the back nine was really good,” said Lee.

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His 16-under-par total at Macau Golf and Country Club is the lowest two-round total in the event and was fuelled by 15 birdies and an eagle.

Poom Saksansin is in second place, his purple patch continuing as he carded a 62, while Korean Jaewoong Eom, also enjoying a good run of form, is third, four off the lead, following a 65, with compatriot Meenwhee Kim, who fired a 66.

Lee barely put a foot wrong again in his debut appearance in a full-field event on the Asian Tour.

He began the day sharing top spot with Scotsman David Drysdale but accelerated away from the pack with five birdies on the front, and two on the back.

“Flawless golf today,” said Lee, who missed numerous birdie opportunities including a four-footer on the last.

“I played really good, didn’t get myself in too much trouble and the last two days have been probably the lowest two days I’ve ever played. So, it’s been fun.”

He is attempting to win his first title in two years, with the most recent being the Scottish Open in 2021.

At the start of the week, he warned that he’s playing well and that his game is trending in the right direction – something very evident by the fact he has an impressive total of eight top-15 finishes this season with a best finish of joint second – and he has been true to his word, dropping just one shot over the two days.

He added: “I feel like I have really good control over the ball, and I’ve been putting well, so if the drives are still on, I think I’m gonna try go low again. I haven’t tried to play passive, I’ve just been trying to play aggressive and it’s nice to make a lot of birdies.”

The previous lowest score after two days had been Australian David Gleeson’s total of 14 under back in 2008.

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India’s Ajeetesh Sandhu, joint second here in 2017 when the event was last played, Ian Snyman from South Africa and Ben Campbell from New Zealand, also went low, carding 63s.

Phachara Khongwatmai from Thailand and Korean Meenwhee Kim returned 64s in the $1 million event, that is the 18th event of the season on the Asian Tour.

Lee is the highest ranked player in the field in 46th place on the Official World Golf Ranking and proved that today, firing an eagle, eight birdies and one bogey, which came on his first hole, the 10th.

“A 62 anywhere is a really nice score,” said the 25-year-old from Perth, who is the younger brother of LPGA Tour star Minjee Lee.

“Especially on a course like this: it was tricky, and the wind got up. It was really nice to really drive it well and capitalise on those drives.

“There are a few holes you can hit driver and a few I didn’t just because we saw some stats from before indicating holes where not so many birdies are made. We were aggressive, smart, smart aggressive. It worked out pretty well. Drove on the fairway most of the time and had wedges in. It was an early start today, 4am wake up, so keen to get back to the room and have a snooze.”

Lee, a two-time winner on the DP World Tour, was helped by playing with countryman Scott Hend and Hong Kong’s Taichi Kho, recent winner of the gold medal in the Asian Games.

He said: “It is one of the better groups I have had all year around. Taichi is around my age, and we can talk about anything and Hendy, I have known him since being a pro on the European Tour, so it’s been really good fun and we all made a lot of birdies.”

While Lee played his round in the morning Drysdale was in the afternoon session, starting on the first hole.

A flawless 62 from David Drysdale to tie the opening round lead with Minwoo Lee ?@vicky_drysdale #SJMMacaoOpen2023 #whereitsAT pic.twitter.com/OZvq84y5Ah

— Asian Tour (@asiantourgolf) October 12, 2023

He birdied the first two and made three-in-a-row from the sixth to make the turn in five under, before more gains on 10, 12, 14 and 15.

“I missed makeable birdie putts on the last three holes, including a 10-footer on the last,” said the 48-year-old, who played in Europe for over 20 years before successfully negotiating this year’s Asian Tour Qualifying School.

“However, I would have taken a 62 at the start of the day. I have shot 10-under before in a tournament. The first time I played the course was yesterday in the Pro-Am, and that was in a buggy!”

He is proving to be one of the leading ‘rookies’ of the season, especially after tying for third in the Mercuries Taiwan Masters last month.

Currently in 49th place on the Asian Tour Order of Merit he is looking for another good week, in order to secure a top-60 finish on the Merit list and keep his Tour card.

Sandhu missed the early part of the season due to a sore back but has gradually been returning to form, as he demonstrated today.

“I was injured for the first half of the year,” said the Indian, who has one win on his Asian Tour resume, the Yeangder TPC in 2017, as well as five runner-up finishes.

“It was nothing too serious, it looked like it could have been a back issue, but the spine is absolutely fine. It was more a ligament tear on the SI joint. I was just over-golfed. Last year, I played all the tournaments in India, chasing the Order of Merit, and on the Asian Tour. At the Saudi International [the first event this season] it just kind of gave up. I was out until May. Took a bit of time to get back into it but the game is in a good place. I was at home for two months, didn’t touch a club.”

Like Lee, and Campbell, he started on the back nine today and made an eagle, on the second, the same as Lee, and recorded seven birdies and a bogey.

He finished three shots behind compatriot Gaganjeet Bhullar here six years ago and feels his game is a match for the Macau course.

“This is a course where you cannot get ahead of yourself. You have to position yourself on every hole, and that suits my game a bit more, you have to be patient. You can’t overpower it in anyway,” he said.

“I think the course is playing easier than the past years. Usually, it is a lot firmer and faster, but it is a little bit softer because of the rain and the typhoon, so I think that is playing a little bit into our hands. It should firm up at the weekend with the sun being down and the wind picking up. Today was a lot easier than what I am used to here. Glad I was able to take advantage of it.”

Phachara had looked to be on course to easily better the nine under mark when he went to nine-under after 14, but surprisingly he pushed his tee shot out of bounds on the par-four 16th. His ball landed on the out of bounds line and unluckily he was forced to play his provisional. He signed for a double-bogey.

Main image: Min Woo Lee. Asian Tour

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