Mackenzie Lee took the lead on the third hole and never looked back.
The rising senior at SMU won the 123rd Women’s North & South Amateur on Saturday at Pinehurst No. 2, topping Jazy Roberts 2 and 1 to win the title. Lee, who was the 19th seed after two rounds of stroke play, had a dominant showing in match play to win the Putter Boy trophy.
“I felt like I had control of the match throughout the whole day,” Lee said, “but I was struggling to make putts the whole round. And when that one went in, it was just really satisfying. I was like, ‘OK, I’m back. I’m here. I’m right here. I’m not done yet.’”
The championship match featured a rain delay, but Lee took firm control of the match when she poured in a sliding birdie putt on the 13th, going 2 up. She was 3 up with three to play and closed the match with a par on the 17th hole.
Lee finished her junior season as a Golfweek honorable mention All-America selection for the Mustangs. And now, she’s the latest Mustang to have success at Pinehurst No. 2.
“A lot of the shortcomings or disappointments I’ve had in the last four or five years, it all kind of shifted in my eyes today,” Lee said. “So many moments that I deeply embedded in my heart, that I took personally. I saw them all. It just really kind of healed me today. A lot of painful moments where I thought I could win and I didn’t, they were all kind of hitting together. I feel like someone put a nice aloe vera on my sunburn.
“As an SMU Mustang, this has a really, really special meaning to me. Mr. Payne Stewart. Bryson DeChambeau. They’ve had crazy achievements here, and while mine is not as grand as theirs, it’s still pretty big for me.”
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