+++ Australian defeats Alison Lee (USA) in a playoff +++ 60,000 spectators witness a world-class field at Seowon Valley Country Club +++ Fully electric BMW Courtesy Car fleet for players at the only LPGA tournament in Korea +++
Seoul/Munich. Minjee Lee has won the 2023 BMW Ladies Championship with rounds of 64, 69, 71, and 68, finishing with a total score of 272 strokes (16 under par). The 27-year-old Australian clinched her second LPGA title of the season with a birdie on the first extra hole, edging out American Alison Lee. Lydia Ko (NZL), the defending champion, finished third at Seowon Valley Country Club, just two strokes behind.
“I would like to congratulate Minjee Lee on winning the 2023 BMW Ladies Championship. She gave an impressive performance to overcome a world-class field and is the well-deserved BMW Ladies Champion,” said Sangyun Han, Director and President of BMW Group Korea. “It has been a thrilling week with many highlights and a fantastic premier at Seowon Valley Country Club. Thank you to all the tournament partners, supporters, volunteers, fans and everyone involved for contributing to this successful event.”
Minjee Lee laid the foundation for her tenth LPGA Tour victory with an outstanding opening round of 64 (-8). In a field of players that could rival a major tournament, only Alison Lee could keep pace over four rounds, having even started slightly better with a 63 on Thursday. However, in playoff, the two-time major winner, Minjee Lee, once again showed greater composure. She had previously secured her first win of the season at the Kroger Queen City Championship last month in a playoff against Charley Hull from England.
“Going into the back nine, the first probably five holes, I wasn’t quite as nervous. I was probably a bit more excited,” said Minjee Lee. “These last few holes, I was quite excited to play, and you know, we always want to be putting ourselves in that position, in the contending position, week-in, week-out and I was lucky enough to do it this week. It’s just really fun to play in those type of conditions and those situations, so I think I really had fun out there this week.”
The shot of the tournament came from Linn Grant in the final round on the 17th hole. After hitting the first shot into the water on the short Par 4, she holed out her third shot from the tee using a 3-wood. “It was a good shot, obviously way better than the first one. It just kept rolling and then it went in. It was crazy”, Grant said. “I love playing here. It’s different from home and our usual venues in the USA or Europe. I really enjoyed the BMW Ladies Championship, and it was nice to finish the tournament with a good round.”
Grant’s third shot was somewhat of an ace, although it won’t officially go down as one. No “real” hole-in-ones happened during the entire tournament, so the two full-electric Hole-in-One Awards, the BMW i5 at the 14th hole and the BMW i7 at the 16th hole, went unclaimed. Last year, it was quite the opposite – both Hole-in-One cars were won in the third round on the same day.
However, even without an ace, the players enjoyed fully electric premium mobility throughout the tournament week, as they all enjoyed the BMW i7 shuttle service. More than 100 BMW vehicles were used to transport players, officials, and fans comfortably and safely to and from the golf course.