Lee Junghwan Clinches Comeback Victory... Did You See His Five Consecutive Birdies?

Genesis Championship Final Round: 7-Under-Par
Dramatic Comeback from Four Shots Behind Secures Third Career Win After Seven Years
Winner's Prize of 980 Million Won Marks a Major Payday

Lee Junghwan lifted the championship trophy for the first time in seven years.

On October 26 at Woojeong Hills Country Club (par 71, 7,367 yards) in Cheonan, South Chungcheong Province, Lee carded eight birdies and one bogey in the fourth round of the Genesis Championship, co-hosted by the Korea Professional Golfers' Association (KPGA) Tour and the DP World Tour, with a total prize fund of 4 million dollars. Shooting a 7-under-par 64 for the day, he finished with a total of 11-under-par 273, beating Nacho Elvira of Spain and Laurie Canter of England, who tied for second, by three strokes.

Lee Junghwan is kissing the trophy immediately after winning the Genesis Championship. Photo by KPGA

Lee Junghwan had been in a title drought since his last victory at the Golfzon-DYB Education Tour Championship in November 2018. After finishing as runner-up six times on the KPGA Tour, he finally quenched his thirst for victory after seven years. This marks his third career win on the KPGA Tour, earning him a winner's prize of 680,000 dollars (approximately 980 million won). With this victory, Lee also secured a two-year DP World Tour exemption, co-hosted by the tournament, and received a Genesis GV80 vehicle as a prize.

Lee is the first Korean player to win a DP World Tour event in a year, following Ahn Byeonghun's victory at this tournament last year. He is the eighth Korean to win on the DP World Tour, joining the ranks of Choi Kyungju, Yang Yong-eun, Noh Seungyul, Jung Yeonjin, Ahn Byeonghun, Lee Soomin, and Wang Jeonghun.

Starting the final round tied for 12th, four shots behind, Lee pulled off a dramatic comeback. He made five consecutive birdies from the 3rd hole (par 4) through the 7th hole (par 3), and then secured another birdie on the 18th hole (par 5), where he was tied for the lead with Elvira. Having finished his round one shot ahead, Lee clinched the victory as Elvira, who was chasing in second place, made back-to-back bogeys on the 17th and 18th holes.

Jung Hwan Lee is carefully placing the ball on the green of the 10th hole in the 4th round of the Genesis Championship. Photo by KPGA

In a post-victory interview, Lee said, "I can't believe today's result, and I was lucky to win because I adapted well to the course." He added, "Maybe I hadn't won for so long because I was meant to win a big tournament like this. I want to show even better performances in the future and I am just grateful." Having become a father of twins in April last year, Lee smiled and said, "Since then, even when things didn't go well on the course, I found myself getting less angry. Thinking of my family helped me stay rational during play, and that has been a benefit to me."

Now eligible to compete on the DP World Tour, Lee shared, "Even before my military service, my goal was always to play on the DP World Tour. If I perform well enough to finish in the top 10 in points, I can qualify for the PGA Tour, so I want to give it another try." He continued, "I've played in the Genesis Scottish Open on the PGA Tour for the past two years, and honestly, there wasn't much difference when I got there. Everyone is just human, so as long as we adapt well to the courses, our players are certainly competitive."

Among Korean players, Choi Seungbin and Song Minhyeok tied for 7th at 6-under-par 278. The 2026 PGA Tour Genesis Scottish Open berths went to Lee Junghwan and Choi Seungbin. Although Choi Seungbin and Song Minhyeok finished with the same score, Choi, who ranked 7th in this year's KPGA Tour Genesis Points, secured the PGA Tour spot ahead of Song, who was 9th.

Hideki Matsuyama of Japan, the 2021 Masters champion, also finished in the group tied for 7th. Kim Siwoo, who plays on the PGA Tour, tied for 21st at 4-under-par 280. Adam Scott of Australia, the 2013 Masters champion, tied for 30th at 3-under-par 281, while Im Sungjae finished tied for 42nd at 1-under-par 283.