Aussie’s meltdown at Pebble Beach: Min Woo Lee hurls ball into Pacific as leader weathers cheating storm
Min Woo Lee (min woo lee) expressed visible fury at the close of the third round of the AT& T Pebble Beach Pro-Am, launching his golf ball into the Pacific after a bogey-bogey finish that left him five shots adrift of the leader heading into the final round on Sunday (ET). The 27-year-old looked poised to make a late move but instead watched a rally evaporate in the wind-swept closing holes.
Tense finish sinks Australian’s charge
Lee produced a moment of real promise when he eagled the par-5 14th, briefly threatening the tournament lead. What followed was a dramatic reversal. After dumping his tee shot into a greenside bunker on the par-3 17th, Lee dropped a shot that interrupted his momentum. The final hole then became a study in frustration: a wayward drive found heavy rough to the right, forcing an unplayable lie and a penalty drop.
Lee’s third shot had to be played from off a cart path and found a greenside bunker. After getting out of the sand, he faced a near-10-metre putt to save par. Strong gusts rippled across the green and left Lee visibly annoyed when the ball seemed to move slightly on the surface. He drew sarcastic cheers from the gallery after taking extra time over the stroke, missed the putt, and uttered an expletive in plain view. After tapping in for bogey, Lee then dramatically tossed his ball into the ocean on the scenic par-5 18th.
The sequence dropped Lee to 14-under and a share of seventh on the leaderboard. Instead of arriving on Sunday within striking distance, the West Australian will begin the final round five shots behind the leader, the gap widened by those costly late holes.
Leader under fire for putting style amid lengthy delays
The tournament leader, sitting at 19-under, has had his own on-course drama. The 18th green late in the third round saw the leader’s group take roughly 35 minutes to complete the hole because of pausing play and wind-related issues, a delay that tested patience across the leaderboard and among spectators.
Separately, the leader has been the subject of online criticism over his putting technique. He uses a long broomstick-style putter and has been accused by some observers of anchoring, a practice banned from competitive play years ago. He pushed back publicly with a short, candid line: “Not anchoring. Literally 2 inches short of my chest haha. ” That defense has done little to dampen the social-media debate, but it has not affected his position atop the leaderboard as he chases the winner’s prize.
Equipment changes and other contenders
Lee’s week also included a putter change before the event. He moved away from a familiar model and put a new prototype Odyssey putter into play, one that appears to feature adjustable weights and a slant-neck hosel. The switch was part of a wider wave of flatstick tinkering across the field as several contenders sought marginal gains on the notoriously tricky Pebble Beach greens.
Other headline names remain within reach, and the leaderboard promises an intense Sunday as gusty conditions and tight scoring set the stage for a dramatic finale. For Lee, the challenge will be to convert the energy from his emotional outburst into focused aggression. He has the game to climb back into contention, but the final-round test at Pebble Beach will demand precision—and composure—when it matters most.
