WHITE SULPHUR SPRINGS, W.Va. - In just five years as a professional golfer, South Korean Danny Lee earned and lost his PGA Tour card, changed his swing coach multiple times and altered his putting grip.
In his 98th start on the Tour, the alterations to his game might be over.
The 24-year-old had a par on the second playoff hole, the 616-yard par-5 No. 17, to win the Greenbrier Classic on Sunday, becoming the ninth player on tour as a first-time champion this year.
David Hearn putted for bogey just before Lee's par putt for the championship in a four-man playoff - Lee, Hearn, Kevin Kisner and Robert Streb - that saw two eliminated on the first extra hole.
"Amazing," Lee said. "I was so close so many times this year and I finally did it."
After an unspectacular start to his fourth round, Lee finished it with three birdies and eight pars on the last 11 holes to set up a four-player sudden-death playoff for the championship. The win gives Lee a spot in the Open Championship (British Open) at St. Andrews in two weeks. The top four players among the top 12 not already exempt earn a spot: Lee and Hearn along with James Hahn and Greg Owen, who were tied for sixth place.
Kisner had five birdies in his last 11 holes for a 64 and Streb, who played the back nine with his 56-degree wedge after accidentally breaking his putter, had a 65 with five birdies and a bogey on the final nine holes.
"Just to have a chance to win here, not having much success in previous years was a great opportunity," said Kisner, who has lost three times in playoffs this season. "I played well and thought 14 was the number the whole day. It was, and a long shot, but I'm just happy the way I'm playing."
Streb finished tied for the second-lowest final round of the tournament behind Russell Henley's 63.
He and Kisner hit their tee shots on the first playoff hole into the rough and were staring at a chip for birdie to guarantee an extra playoff hole. After both hit their chips past the hole, Lee and Hearn followed with birdie putts to send the playoff to a second hole.
"After I finished at 13-under, I was just trying to calm down," Lee said. "I was so nervous. My head was blank and I was just trying to breathe. As soon as I stood on the 18th tee box, I felt ready. I felt like I could really win this thing."
The victory is a culmination of a young career that already has had plenty of ups and downs.
Lee said he wondered if he would ever win.
"I think three years ago when I lost my PGA Tour card, I was going through a swing change," said Lee of 2012 when he played in 26 events with three top 25s, 10 missed cuts, one withdrawal and just $359,112 in prize money. "I just played horrible that year. I didn't know how to hit a golf ball because there were so many things and thoughts in my head. I was going through a rough time, but my parents were really supporting me."
He bounced back on the Web.com Tour in 2013, finishing in the top 15 in prize money to regain his PGA Tour card. He missed seven cuts in his first nine starts that year before the best finish of his career, second at the 2014 Puerto Rico Open.
That's when he changed coaches for what appears to be the last time.
"Meeting my new coach, Drew Steckel, was a big life changer," he said. "I never really was happy with my golf swing when I was young. I mean, I'm still young, but when I was a teenager. I wanted to swing like Tiger Woods or Justin Rose, that kind of swing. I've gone through probably 100 coaches, and meeting Drew Steckel was the best thing that ever happened to me."
Lee is this season's ninth first-time winner on the PGA Tour, following Ben Martin (Shriners Hospitals Open), Streb (The McGladrey Classic), Nick Taylor (Sanderson Farms Championship), Brooks Koepka (Waste Management Phoenix Open), James Hahn (Northern Trust Open), Alex Cejka (Puerto Rico Open), David Lingmerth (The Memorial) and Fabian Gomez (FedEx St. Jude Classic).
The victory sends him to the British Open, his third major in what will be the 100th start of his career after the upcoming John Deere Classic.
Lee missed the cut at both the 2009 Masters and the U.S. Open two weeks ago.
"It's very lucky that they're playing (the British Open) at St. Andrews," he said. "I always wanted to play there and I get to go over there. It's an ancient place for a golfer. I cannot wait."
Sunday marked the third time in the six-year history of the Greenbrier Classic that it was decided by a playoff. In 2011, Scott Stallings won his first PGA Tour event on the first playoff hole with a birdie on No. 18, outlasting Bill Haas and Bob Estes. In 2012, Ted Potter Jr. also recorded his initial win in a playoff, defeating Troy Kelly on No. 17.
Also, the Classic has never been won by the third-round leader. Billy Hurley led after the second and third rounds in 2014 in the tournament won by Angel Cabrera. In 2013, Johnson Wagner led entering the fourth round and lost out to Jonas Blixt; Like Hurley last year, Webb Simpson led in the second and third rounds in 2012, but Potter came back from four shots down; In 2011, Anthony Kim led entering the final 18 holes, but lost to Stallings; and in 2010, Jeff Overton led Stuart Appleby by seven strokes with 18 holes left, but Appleby's historical and course-record 59 resulted in a one-stroke victory.
Contact Assistant Sports Editor Rich Stevens at richstevens@dailymailwv.com or 304-348-4837. Follow him on Twitter @richdailymail.