Alison Lee is enjoying a few of her greatest golf of season, and she or he credit Fred Coupes for her late-season resurgence.
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Alison Lee is on some form of heater.
Over the previous month, she’s racked up two runner-up finishes and a win on the Aramco Staff Collection, registering a scoring common of 65.6 over her final 13 rounds. Now on the CME Group Tour Championship, Lee is as soon as once more in effective type, discovering herself close to the highest of the leaderboard in a bid to assert the $2 million first prize.
“It’s fairly fricking good,” Lee mentioned. “It’s been actually cool to play some good golf. Been a variety of enjoyable.”
This season hasn’t at all times been so enjoyable.
For a lot of 2023, Lee might by no means fairly discover her recreation. She didn’t miss many cuts (she’s missed the weekend simply twice all season), however she not often discovered herself in rivalry. The mediocrity started to put on on the 28-year-old.
“Simply three, 4 months in the past I might joke round how I’m solely going to play for just a few extra years and retire,” Lee mentioned. “I believed time and again, like, yeah, I don’t suppose I’ll ever win. I don’t suppose I’ll be a high participant anymore. That’s simply not me.”
As any golfer is aware of, confidence is every little thing. And when that confidence is shaken, it may be powerful to get it again.
Fortunately for Lee, these round her lifted her up.
“[They] had been at all times sending me constructive messages telling me I’ve what it takes,” she mentioned. “As a result of I didn’t imagine it. To see them see my recreation and imagine in me, I form of tried to carry onto that and push my approach by.”
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However it wasn’t simply these closest to Lee that assisted in resurgence. She additionally discovered inspiration from former Masters champ Fred {Couples}.
“A pair months in the past now, I performed golf with Freddy {Couples} in a pro-am,” Lee mentioned. “It was my first time assembly him. We performed 18 holes. Afterwards he obtained my quantity and now we have been texting forwards and backwards the final couple months.
“Each single day, ‘You’re so good at golf,’” she continued. “You must imagine it. I used to be like, ‘Oh, Freddy, it’s effective. I’m okay. I don’t know what you’re speaking about.’”
Lee went as far as to name {Couples} her “No. 1 supporter” over the previous few months.
“He simply was hammering into me like it is advisable imagine. You’re a very good participant. You must go on the market and imagine you’re the sh*t and you are able to do it,” Lee mentioned. “Hammering that into me actually resonated with me.”
As soon as Lee started to imagine the issues {Couples} was saying, there was no trying again. In her final six begins, Lee has vaulted from No. 65 within the Rolex Rankings all the best way as much as No. 27. And now on the CME Group Tour Championship, Lee has positioned herself for a weekend run on the LPGA’s season-long title.
“It’s higher late than by no means,” Lee mentioned. “Over the previous few weeks, placing myself in rivalry, enjoying 4 rounds of actually good golf, and virtually successful just a few occasions, it’s undoubtedly ignited a hearth in me. Positively given me much more motivation to work exhausting, and it’s proven me that I do nonetheless have what it takes to win out right here.”
