Min Woo Lee has admitted what he only realised about Augusta National after playing The Masters for a fifth time earlier this year.
Lee looked set to be one of those players who may work out the secret to playing well around Augusta National. The 27-year-old finished tied for 14th on his first appearance at The Masters back in 2022.
Unfortunately, he has been unable to improve upon that result since.
What surprised Min Woo Lee about Augusta National at this year’s Masters
Min Woo Lee has not yet registered another top 20 finish at the first major of the year. Meanwhile, he has missed the cut twice, including back in April. He was 11 over par for the first two rounds.
But it would appear that it is never too late to learn something new about the iconic venue.
The Masters is unique in being the one major that returns to the same course every year. With that, there should not be many secrets left to uncover.
Nevertheless, speaking on Grant Horvat’s YouTube channel, the Australian revealed what he only worked out about Augusta after playing in The Masters this year.
“I believe in what I do, so if I want to hit a draw, I hit a draw. At Augusta, it was tough. I’d hit a draw and it would be a hook. So if I hit a fade, it would be a draw still. I was too inside. At Augusta, there’s actually a lot of right to left slopes. I don’t think I realised that until after the tournament,” he said.
“I’ve played there five times. My fifth tournament. I don’t know why, this year it felt like I learnt a lot. You’ve got to hit a lot of hold ups. That’s why I think a lot of the faders actually do pretty well at Augusta, because they can just hold it off that right to left hill. DJ, Scottie, everyone who fades it. Off the tee, it’s a draw, but I think people can manage that. You don’t need to draw it that much. DJ fades everything and he still won. You don’t need to fade it or draw it. You need both, but not drastically.”
Min Woo Lee assesses the current state of his game
Lee has long been considered one of the most exciting talents on the PGA Tour. He hits the ball an absolute mile, while he has a sublime touch around the greens.
His iron game has definitely improved this year, though he still finds himself in the middle of the pack on the PGA Tour.
And Lee suggested to Horvat that he was really pleased with where his game is right now.
“It feels great. This is just golf. I played unbelievable from Pebble Beach, came second there, and then had a few great finishes. I got to Augusta, prepping really well, thinking I was going to do well. I love the course, but I just played very bad. Hilton, I played pretty bad too. My ball-striking’s been really good,” he said.
“When you’re 50th or 60th, or 40th even, you’re trying to make it happen and make it work. But it’s kind of hard to get motivated to play. Having no cut, it doesn’t have that feel.”
Lee is certainly one of those players who has the potential to win one of the four biggest prizes in the game.
However, he is now at a stage in his career where that potential needs to start turning into quality when the pressure is at its most intense.
