THE AMERICAN EXPRESS

January 22, 2026

Min Woo Lee

PGA WEST Pete Dye Stadium Course

Quick Quotes

Q. Perfect day today, bogey free. Talk a little bit about the first round of the season, what was going right for you?

MIN WOO LEE: Yeah, there was a little bit of anxiousness starting out. The first round of the year, bit of a swing, not change, but something that we've been working on in the off-season. So you didn't really know how it was going to go. But, yeah, started off really nice. Yeah, kept it going. It was a great day to make some birdies. Probably the still he's day I've ever played golf in. So the numbers were exactly, you know, what you wanted and you just execute 'em. But it was a really fun day.

Q. You're tied for the lead, tomorrow playing Stadium, how does that change your game plan if anything at all?

MIN WOO LEE: Yeah, just same thing. Go out there and hopefully play some good golf. Yeah, it's probably the tougher course out of the three, but yeah, just go out there and it's nice to have a really good start and a good backing, I guess, from the first round, and, yeah, I hit it really good, so just keep it going for tomorrow.

Q. Obviously this is a tournament known for low scoring, but 62 is still 62, right.

MIN WOO LEE: Yeah.

Q. I mean, what worked so well that this wasn't a 66, let's say?

MIN WOO LEE: Yeah, I drove it really well early on. Gave myself a lot of short wedges. Hit a lot of good numbers. Holed some putts. So I think driving and everything was the key, but, yeah, I mean holing out on the greens was really nice. I changed my grip only like a week and a half ago, so it was a very, it's good that you see results straight away. But that was pretty much the anxiousness that I had. I didn't know how it would go on the greens and it turned out well.

Q. Anything drastic in the change?

MIN WOO LEE: Just a stronger left grip. I tend to just leave the club face open on the way back and then on the way through it's nearly too late to close it back up. So a bit of a stronger grip and yeah it was nice to actually see the ball kind of start on the line and not right as usual.

Q. Obviously you've got two more courses to play, one of 'em kind of easier than the other one. Do you even think about, oh well, I'm in 1st or 5th or anything like that yet?

MIN WOO LEE: No, I don't think so. I think golf is, you can very easily get ahead of yourself. There's still three more days. You still got to get yourself in contention. Yes, I played one of the easier courses, so the other waves are going to get these conditions as well. So just go out there and try to play the best and stick to your processes.

Q. Maybe not these conditions. That was perfect.

MIN WOO LEE: Yeah, I mean, it will be nice, it will be nice for the next four days to have it.

Q. Long tradition of history in this tournament, we're now in the 67th annual year. That's happening concurrent to no shortage of reports or rumors, conjecture, whatever you want to call it that next year the PGA TOUR might have a more condensed schedule, which could impact the American Express. You played out here before, you played well, you had a great day today. What case would you might be made would you say for this tournament to stay here to stay where it is and when it is?

MIN WOO LEE: Yeah, I don't know too much about that. I just try to play golf. I love this tournament. It's a great place to start the year. Great courses and lots of fun and make some birdies. So it is nice to have in the schedule, because the Signature Events are very hard and major like, so it is nice to be able to hit it in the rough and actually hit it on the green. So I would love it to be in the schedule and I would love it to, yeah, just be there next year and years coming.