HOUSTON — Min Woo Lee believed he was good enough to be on the PGA Tour. It’s the place he had worked his entire life to get to. When he arrived, it was a realization of his dreams.
But being on the PGA Tour and being able to contend on the PGA Tour are two different things. And Lee learned that the hard way last year.
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Lee is the defending champion at this week’s 2026 Texas Children’s Houston Open, where he held off Scottie Scheffler and Gary Woodland to win by a shot last year. It was a week that marked his arrival on Tour, a win that proved he was ready for the brightest of lights.
Or so he thought.
“I thought that I was good enough to be out here and play, but the Signature Events beat me up last year,” Lee said Tuesday in a pre-tournament news conference at Memorial Park. “I needed to get a lot better and a lot more stable. A lot stronger, too.”
Min Woo Lee poses with the trophy after winning the 2025 Texas Children’s Houston Open.
Lee’s win was one that elevated his own expectations, but he struggled in the PGA Tour’s biggest events. Come the fall, he had a meeting with his team and diagnosed where he needed to make changes in his game. His biggest strength, the driver, was also penalizing him.
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He needed to rein it in while still being dominant off the tee. And to begin 2026, he has done just that.
Lee has made all six cuts this year, including a runner-up finish at Pebble Beach and T-6 at Bay Hill, both signature events. His clubhead speed with driver is about one mile-per-hour less this year than it was last year, but he has actually increased his average driving distance by nearly two yards. His swing is more controlled and powerful, and the results are showing in some of the best golf of Lee’s career.
“It was at a point where I’d rather play not the signature events and play well on courses that weren’t maybe as tough,” Lee said. “You play Bay Hill, you play any of the signature events, the rough was three, four inches long. If you just missed the fairway by a yard, you’re hacking it out, which I thought was pretty tough.”
Lee admitted he slowed down his swing, ever so slightly, to be more in control of the golf ball off the tee. Last year, he ranked 105th in Strokes Gained: Off the Tee. So far in 2026? He’s seventh.
Min Woo Lee reacts after winning the 2025 Texas Children’s Houston Open.
“For me, I felt like I went backwards, which wasn’t I guess the right way,” Lee said. “These young kids are hitting it long and pretty straight. You’ve just got to hit it straight at signature events. I mean, rough, we thought that it was — yeah, I mean, I guess everyone says the scores are too low, so then we have to make the rough really thick. But that gets away of a skill which kind of hurts me, which did hurt me. Like I said, it was a blessing playing well now and a lot more accurate, which is great.”
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Last year at Memorial Park, Lee was dominant with his driver and rode a hot putter to his first Tour victory. He hasn’t been able to hoist a trophy again, but this week, he’s back at the place where he gets to defend for the first time.
And hitting his driver better than ever, he has a great chance to go back-to-back.
“One of the best feelings in the world, work hard and then hold that trophy towards the end of the week,” Lee said. “Hopefully I can do that this week and defend. But very excited for this week, playing very good golf. It’s going to be a warm one, but I’m ready for it.”
This article originally appeared on Golfweek: Why Houston Open defending champ Min Woo Lee slowed down his swing
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