Australian golfer Min Woo Lee has found an unexpected source of inspiration as he prepares for two home events. Speaking to Golf Australia in an interview published on 28 October 2026, he described watching NBA star Stephen Curry prepare to play and spending time around seven-time Formula 1 world champion Lewis Hamilton. For Lee, these encounters are not simply celebrity moments. They raise a serious sporting question: how do exceptional competitors combine discipline, confidence and enjoyment without losing the personality that brought them success?
What Lee noticed in Curry's preparation
Lee watched Curry warming up for a Golden State Warriors game over the preceding weekend. He was struck by the apparent ease and variety of the guard's shooting. The wider lesson Lee took from the experience concerns the rhythm of elite practice: an athlete can pursue maximum precision while still keeping the work lively, communicative and enjoyable.
Lee also mentioned his connection with Hamilton. The interview, however, does not say the Formula 1 driver gave him swing instruction, nor does it identify any specific Hamilton technique that can be transferred to a golf course. The common thread is Lee's curiosity about how high performers organise their work and preserve a sense of enjoyment under scrutiny.
There is a plausible parallel between basketball and golf, although it is an editorial interpretation rather than a direct training claim by Lee. Both reward repeatable execution after extensive preparation. Once the necessary choices have been made, trusting a familiar movement may be more useful than trying to control every detail consciously. Their mechanics are different; the underlying question of preparation and commitment can still travel between sports.
Why improvement is not the same as winning
Lee believes 2026 has brought a meaningful improvement in his tournament performances. He spoke of practising harder and smarter, finding greater trust in his game and becoming less vulnerable to a single poor round. That self-assessment is supported by results: he collected six PGA TOUR top-10 finishes during the season and shared fourth place at the TOUR Championship.
Yet the Australian is not treating those finishes as an end point. He wants another victory, and ideally more than one. That is a significant distinction in elite golf. Consistent ball-striking and good course management create opportunities over four rounds, but claiming a trophy still requires precision when the leaderboard tightens. Lee's stated ambition is to turn strong weeks into winning weeks.
A home double, with different demands on each course
The first target is the BMW Australian PGA Championship, scheduled for 26–29 November 2026 at The Lakes Golf Club in Sydney. Next is the Australian Open, set for 3–6 December at Kingston Heath Golf Club in Melbourne. Both dates and venues are listed by the PGA of Australia. Lee won the Australian PGA Championship in 2023; this time he wants to contend for both national titles.
Course strategy will be central. Looking back on the 2025 Australian Open at Royal Melbourne, Lee recalled limiting his use of the driver because the layout frequently demanded placement rather than maximum distance. He anticipates being able to use that club more often at Kingston Heath. That is a forecast about his likely options, not a claim that an aggressive tee shot will be correct on every hole: wind, bunkers, landing areas and the day's setup may all change the best decision.
The two tournaments therefore provide an unusually clear examination of his progress. To win at home, he must do more than produce spectacular drives; he must select the right shots repeatedly and convert the resulting chances.
A launchpad for 2027 — not a result already achieved
Lee said thoughts of an Australian double surfaced while travelling home from India. The tournaments fall late in the calendar year, but success could influence his mindset for the beginning of 2027. His point was psychological: lifting a trophy before the new season can leave a player feeling freer and more assured.
None of that makes victory inevitable. The interview was given before either event began, and Lee's confidence should be understood as an intention, not a prediction validated by the scorecard. What is new is the clarity of his target. Rather than merely demonstrate that he can hit difficult shots under pressure, he wants to make winning a more regular outcome of the work behind them.
Verification: The interview and attributed views are from Russell Gould's Golf Australia report of 28 October 2026. Tournament dates and venues were cross-checked with the PGA of Australia; Lee's shared fourth at the TOUR Championship with the event leaderboard. No unverified direct quotations or supposed technical advice from Curry or Hamilton are presented.
