On Thursday, Rachel Lee took to heart Theodore Roosevelt’s advice to “speak softly and carry a big stick.” Accompanied by her mother Jung, who spoke little and carried a bag of big clubs with her, the 16-year-old Sydney schoolgirl shocked the golf world by winning the first round of under-67s at her hometown The Lakes to move into the lead. 2023 Australian Open.
“It was amazing, it was a dream come true,” Rachel’s father Jay told the Guardian. “Many memories suddenly came back; Rachel first picked up a golf club at a holiday camp when she was 10… She hit 11 shots to get out of the dugout in her first handicap match… She was organizing competitions at home to see who was who. “He’s cleaning the bathroom.”
Jay Lee, a hotel manager, resigns from bathroom duty in the near future.
Her “lovely, friendly, calm” daughter braved heavy rain and a star-studded field to bag eight birdies and top the leaderboard with America’s Jenny Shin. On Friday, she enjoyed a one-stroke lead over former world No. 1 and two-time major champion Jiyai Shin, while remaining one stroke behind Australia’s Steph Kyriacou in a foursome.
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But Lee’s teenage life was almost over before he even made a shot. The 10th grade student of Endeavor Sports High School was on the verge of being disqualified for missing the start time after confusing the start time.
A shy Lee later said, “I thought I was at 8.38am, not 8.28am.” “I just ran for my life.” His coach, Steve McRae, called it a “complete pick-up” and admitted he had to rush the young offensive lineman out of practice to make his big-league debut.
“But in typical Rachel fashion, she endured yet another layer of pressure as she stepped in,” he said. “He went out there, got right into game mode and made a great shot. Even when she realized she was leading, Rachel was quite shy. ‘You know what, Steve? I didn’t even realize what happened.” I had to remind him that yesterday was pretty weird.
Lee is an only child from Marsfield in Sydney’s northwest, who loves reading and playing the flute and dotes on her dog Dodo and cat Mango. Graduates of Avondale golf club in Pymble qualified for the Australian Open by winning a qualifying event at Ryde-Parramatta golf club on Monday. This follows his first professional win at the NSW Open Golf regional tournament at Mollymook last week.
Despite being the youngest player in the field and alongside her childhood coach and golf hero Sarah Oh (who shot a one-over 74), Lee was on pace to win a thrilling play-off and line up with the world’s best golfers at The Lakes. He kept his courage.
“Rachel’s game has come on leaps and bounds lately,” McRae said. “A few months ago she was in a bit of a slump. It wasn’t coming together and she had fallen off. But she got back to her old swing and her confidence came back. Rachel worked hard, improved her mentality and focused very sharply… except maybe at tea time.”
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Wollongong-based coach McRae, who has advised golfers in the US, Japan and Korea, met Lee when he was 14. “I watched him play on the NSW south coast and immediately saw the potential,” he said. “He was calm, quiet and competent.”
He also let his big sticks do the talking.
“Rachel doesn’t like to talk. I’m sure teenage emotions swirl, but he’s pretty self-controlled, so like his parents and teachers, I try to keep it simple and don’t over-coach him, just offer support and advice.
Lee’s principal, James Kozlowski, does the same, but admits it may not be easy after Lee announces himself to the golf world in this way.
“Rachel is respectful, driven, and talented both academically and athletically,” he said. “But overnight it went from relative obscurity to international news, and a new challenge is looming. He’s on the radar, he’s under more pressure, and people will start whispering in his ear. “We teach our students how brutal professional sport can be, how a career can end in a heartbeat, but this education is for life.”
So far Lee has gotten the balance right. His attendance and grades are very good. But he still had to ask for permission to skip class this week to play in the country’s most prestigious golf tournament as he entered the tough end of his HSC studies.
“After Rachel won the Mollymook last week, we sat down with her family and talked about the increased demands and the extraordinary commitment Rachel’s talent would bring to her,” Kozlowski said.
Endeavor has plenty of support in the school halls, full of young stars making their way in the NRL, AFL, A-League and many other sports. Three of the school’s students are in the Australian Open field this year; Lee was joined by 10th grader Ann Jang (three over 76) and 2022 PGA Junior Championship winner Jeff Guan. He ranks eighth in the men’s rankings.
Jay Lee says his only advice to his daughter is to “have fun and have fun.”
This is easier said than done as professionalism emerges, sponsors multiply and international tour calls are made.
“I’m more worried about my wife,” Lee said. “He knows very little about golf and would like to use a stroller in the future as he is too tired of carrying Rachel’s bag. But Rachel likes having him there because he doesn’t give advice. It just cheers him up.”