New Zealand Golf popped the champagne corks last night to celebrate the remarkable victory by amateur Danny Lee who won the Johnnie Walker Classic in Perth.
Lee made four birdies in the final six holes for a final round five-under par 67 and his tournament score of 17-under par gave him a one shot victory over a trio including overnight co-leader Ross McGowan (England), Japan's Hiroyuki Fujita and Chile's Felipe Aguilar.
New Zealand Golf CEO Bill MacGowan says Lee's victory is a major boost to the organisation as well as the upcoming Michael Hill New Zealand Open where the Rotorua teenager will be playing as an amateur for the final time in this country.
MacGowan says Danny's a product of our High Performance programme and this result, along with his brilliant performances over the last year, is a real fillip to our organisation.
Lee's victory means that when he does turn professional - after April's Masters in Augusta - he will have exemption on the European, Asian and Australasian tours for the rest of this year and next year which gives him an incredible foundation on which to build his career.
He heads to Melbourne for next week's Moonah Classic before heading home for the New Zealand PGA Championship at Clearwater and the New Zealand Open at The Hills in Queenstown - all co-sanctioned events with the Nationwide Tour.
