Lee: It’s a tough life on tour
Kiwi reflects on the struggles of coping with difficult season
Danny Lee has opened up about the challenges he faced during what has been a long and tough year. The Kiwi golfer’s season came to an end on Monday after finishing outside the top 70 point leaders in the FedExCup standings following his finish in a share of 49th place at the second PGA Tour playoff event.
Lee finished with a solid fourunder par on the final day of the Dell Technologies Championship at the TPC Boston, but it wasn’t enough to salvage a disappointing tournament where he ended up 13 shots behind winner Bryson DeChambeau.
It has been an up and down season for Lee, finishing with three top 10 finishes, while also struggling with injuries and personal issues.
In February, Lee withdrew from the Honda Classic on the PGA Tour due to family reasons.
In an interview with Radio Sport’s Tee Time, the 28-year-old Lee opened up about the mental and physical challenges he went through during the season.
“I could’ve gone a lot better but I’ve been going through some really tough times this year,” Lee said.
“The family issues and the body — I got injured on the third playoff event last year and I was still recovering in the early beginning of the season.
“It wasn’t the year I wanted but I’m not out of it. I got another shot at it next year and I’ll be way better than I was this year.”
Lee said competing on the PGA Tour was a lifestyle that isn’t for everybody, and he has at times found it difficult to cope with the daily grind.
“People have to understand it’s not just for everybody. And when things are not going your way, for life in general, it tears you down,” he said.
“Whenever I have a week off, I don’t just sit on my couch and watch TV. I wake up early in the morning,
When it’s not going your way, it tears you down. Danny Lee
take supplements, take Arginine, protein shakes, hit the gym, practice, hit balls, short game, just non-stop, just fighting and non-stop putting so much work in.
“I sometimes think when things are not going my way I don’t know why I keep doing this. It is a tough life,” he said.
But Lee was also looking forward to the future, especially the arrival of his first child with his partner Yoomi Kong.
“[When] Yoomi told me she was pregnant, she actually changed my life when she actually said that.
“And we are both very excited, a little bit worried and hopefully he’s a little bit better than me because I was a troublemaker when I was a kid. But hopefully he’s more on his mother’s side.”