Lee Seung-taek of Korea appears on throughout a apply spherical forward of the Sony Open at Waialae Nation Membership in Honolulu, Hawaii, Tuesday (native time). Yonhap
Having arrived in Hawaii this week to make his PGA Tour debut, rookie Lee Seung-taek has already had some “welcome to the massive present” moments.
“I’ve needed to play on the PGA Tour for a very long time. And as soon as I checked out the course earlier than the event, I noticed how tough the setup was and the way way more I needed to put together,” Lee advised Korean reporters Thursday in a Zoom interview from Waialae Nation Membership in Honolulu, Hawaii, the positioning of the season-opening Sony Open.
Lee earned his PGA Tour card by ending thirteenth within the factors rankings on the second-tier Korn Ferry Tour final yr, with these within the prime 20 transferring up the ladder.
“I felt like I’ve run into one other wall right here after clearing one on the Korn Ferry Tour final yr,” Lee added. “The course is way more tough than I imagined, and I must hit pictures with excessive trajectory as a result of greens are actually agency. The tough is so deep that you simply may damage your wrist making an attempt to play out of it. I must discover ways to play these pictures because the season progresses.”
Off the course, Lee mentioned he has been pleasantly stunned by how properly PGA Tour gamers are handled, particularly on the subject of eating choices.
“It was simply so robust on the Korn Ferry Tour. All I may eat was potatoes. Right here, we will get no matter greens or meat you need,” Lee mentioned. “And every thing is all arrange within the lockers, and transportation is all taken care of to assist all of the gamers really feel snug. I may actually sense that the PGA Tour is certainly the best tour on the earth.”
Lee’s PGA Tour debut is available in the identical week as three Korean gamers, together with longtime PGA Tour member An Byeong-hun, defected to LIV Golf, the Saudi Arabia-backed breakaway circuit that has thrown luggage of cash at stars since its launch in 2022.
“I have never given any thought to different excursions. I’ve solely needed to play on the PGA Tour since I used to be a child,” Lee mentioned. “I’ve this sense of delight that if I can survive right here, I can grow to be among the many finest golfers on the earth.”
Lee mentioned he would like to play in a spherical with two of the perfect, Scottie Scheffler and Rory McIlroy, plus former No. 1 and three-time main champion Jordan Spieth.
Lee did have a apply spherical with Spieth earlier this week.
“He will get alongside properly with different Korean gamers and so he was fairly pleasant,” Lee mentioned. “He gave me just a few tips about hitting method pictures on some holes. It was wonderful. And seeing the way in which he ready for the event, I may see why he’s such an excellent participant.”
Lee mentioned he hopes to choose McIlroy’s brains someday and added, “I wish to ask him how he will get prepared for every event as a result of it will probably get fairly lonely out right here on the PGA Tour.”
Finally, Lee desires to be ok to hold with one of the best gamers, not simply to be in awe of them.
“My major objective is to retain my tour card,” he mentioned. “In the end, I wish to enhance to a degree the place I will not be a pushover anyplace on the earth. I haven’t got the expertise or the bodily strengths of different gamers, and I must be exact with my ball placing right here.”
