After lighting up the morning with nine birdies and delivering a clutch tee shot when it mattered most, Lee Chieh-po claimed victory in the 36-hole finale of LIV Golf Promotions on Saturday.
The win isn’t just a career highlight for the 30-year-old golfer; it’s a proud moment for Chinese Taipei as he secures a spot in LIV Golf’s 2025 season.
“It means a lot for our players,” said Lee, an Asian Tour regular who clinched his maiden victory earlier this year at the International Series Thailand. “LIV Golf, I think it’s many players’ dream. I go there, and they will come.”
Competing under his English name, Max, Lee carded a two-round total of 10-under at Riyadh Golf Club, finishing two strokes ahead of Asian Tour player Taichi Kho and Branden Grace, a relegated LIV Golf player.
The 20-player final day featured intense competition, with a total of 92 players initially vying for a chance to join LIV Golf.
The top 10 finishers were awarded exemptions to all 10 tournaments in The International Series for the 2025 season.
Notably, six players among them had yet to achieve such status: American Ollie Schniederjans, Australians Brett Coletta and Jack Buchanan (tied for fourth at 5-under), Germany’s Max Rottluff (seventh at 4-under), and Korea’s Soomin Lee and England’s David Horsey (part of a tie for eighth at 3-under).
Lee came out swinging in the morning, firing a sizzling 7-under 64 packed with nine birdies—four of them in his final five holes.
That red-hot round gave him a two-shot cushion over Schniederjans, who put together a rock-solid, bogey-free 66. The afternoon brought more drama, but Lee kept his nerve, fending off Grace and the chasing pack.
By the turn, he still clung to a one-shot edge over Grace, who had just notched his fourth birdie on the 11th.
Late in the round, Lee appeared to be cruising with a three-stroke lead. However, a misstep at the par-4 16th resulted in a bogey. “I hit it way poor to the left, and I was laughing, like, what am I doing?” Lee recounted.
As Grace and Kho closed with birdies at the 18th, Lee’s lead narrowed to a single shot heading into the par-3 17th, widely considered the most challenging hole on the back nine.
It was here that Lee delivered the shot of the day. His tee shot rolled within inches of the cup, setting up a birdie and effectively sealing his victory. He then safely navigated the 18th hole to close out the win.
“Just tried to reset my mind,” Lee said of his approach. “Hole No. 17, that shot is very important. I hit a very good tee shot.”
Branden Grace, watching from the clubhouse, acknowledged Lee’s strong performance. Grace, a member of Stinger GC, had hoped to reclaim his spot on the LIV Golf roster with a win.
“Played good, gave it everything,” Grace said. “It was a good go. Now I’ll go home and have a holiday.”
Schniederjans, a former top-ranked amateur, found encouragement in his performance despite falling short of victory. “I’m very confident about where everything is heading,” he said.
“I had to hit a lot of cool putts and shots under pressure, so it was really nice to see that. It did give me even more confidence. But I have a lot of confidence in my future.”
Lee’s confidence, meanwhile, is at an all-time high. A hip injury last year forced Lee to tinker with his swing, but the changes seem to have paid off in spades.
His steady play throughout 2023 has been a masterclass in resilience, capped by a gutsy win at the International Series Thailand, where he surged past LIV Golf’s Peter Uihlein to claim the title.
Now, as he steps onto the LIV Golf stage, Lee is ready to embrace the challenges and opportunities ahead.
“On the LIV Tour, every player is very strong,” he said. “I think I can learn something. I will learn something.”
