For the last 13 years, Mi Hyang Lee has been battling with the best on the LPGA Tour. She has faced many great golfers and future legends along the way, including Annika Sorenstam, Nelly Korda, Lydia Ko, and others. Her journey has seen her make nearly 300 professional appearances and win 2 titles. Lee has also had 25 more top-10 finishes along the way, proving to the world that she is a strong contender in every tournament she plays. But there is more to the veteran golfer than just her professional accolades.

Taking on the best golfers in the world consistently for so long is no easy task. But Mi Hyang Lee has been doing it for over a decade now. A part of her motivation might be due to her incredible passion and determination to keep fighting. But she must also be influenced by her humble roots, which have made her so resilient over the years. Let’s learn more about her upbringing to understand how Lee has been able to sustain a career for over a decade.

Background and career of Mi Hyang Lee

On March 30, 1993, Shin Ae-sook and Lee Young-gu brought home a future golf star as a part of their family in Seoul, South Korea. They named her Mi Hyang Lee and raised her to be diligent. As Mi herself described him, her father was a very hard-working individual. Even when the family faced financial difficulties, he didn’t let the stress get to them. He worked a full-time job and also had a side gig to ensure that Young-gu and Mi are always fed and happy. “My mother, who was a full-time homemaker, is a very strong person, while my father is a hard worker who does not take breaks even here in South Korea,” she explained. That’s where his daughter probably picked up determination and resiliency.

Lee was only 3 years old when she was introduced to golf. She continued playing it through her teen years, even when she was studying at Ewha Womans University. By her late teens, the 32-year-old was already regarded as one of the better golfers in South Korea. In 2011, at the age of 18, Lee finally turned pro. It didn’t take her long to catch attention as she finished at T29 in the 2011 LPGA Final Qualifying Tournament. A year later, she made her debut on the LPGA Tour and has since been participating in tournaments every year, looking for her next big win.

Lee got her first win in the American women’s golf league in the 2014 Mizuno Classic by beating the likes of Danielle Kang and Nelly Korda‘s sister, Jessica, to grab her first title. She performed consistently in the KLPGA Tour as well and got a 2nd place finish in the 2015 Japan Women’s Open Golf Championship. The South Korean grabbed her second LPGA Tour win in 2017 Aberdeen Asset Management Ladies Scottish Open against a field that included Minjee Lee and a young Lydia Ko. But even today, her best career finish was the solo 2nd at the 2020 ANA Inspiration, where Lee finished 3 strokes off fellow South Korean, Joanna Coe, with Lexi Thompson breathing down her neck at 3rd.

Through the years, Mi Hyang Lee has grown as a player, and despite an 8-year drought, she has never had more experience than right now to get her next LPGA Tour win. But golf is not all that the Seoul local is about. There is more to Lee’s life than just swinging the club on the fairway. Let’s explore a side of the 32-year-old that doesn’t show up on the course.

A touch of life on the face of determination

On the course, not many on the LPGA Tour can say that they have had a longer career than Mi Hyang Lee. But they would probably also be envious of the beautiful life she leads outside the course. Browsing through her Instagram, we can see that Lee likes to make every moment in her life special. While she must be living off her bag on the Tour, the Seoul citizens still seem to enjoy traveling. Whether she is watching the sunset in San Francisco or cheering for her favorite baseball team, the SSG Landers, from the stadium, Lee doesn’t shy away from sharing glimpses of her life with her followers. Just a few weeks ago, she shared a picture on Instagram that was captioned, “Really…. I can’t believe it no matter how many times I see it….. I’ve been a fan since I was 17.. Unbelievable that’s why I did… Thank you so much.” 

Her random pictures of holding a birthday cake up or saying a prayer before devouring a plate of cheesecake with strawberries and vanilla ice cream suggest that she might have a sweet tooth. Btw, cake is a very common theme on her Instagram, which should give us a hint about her favorite kind of dessert. She has also shared an iconic pose of arms spread wide on the top of a cliff, with the beach in the background, and ordinary peace sign selfies with friends. But she also shows off her amazing style while wearing a hanbok, the traditional Korean dress that has been passed down from the royal generations. There is another side to her that also enjoys digital games, as she was seen playing Mortal Kombat on an arcade machine. What can Mi Hyang Lee not do? We will never know.