Scott is this week making his debut at the PGA Tour’s RSM Classic at Sea Island in Georgia but took time in his pre-tournament press conference to praise the performance of Lee in Europe this year and his emergence as one of world golf’s elite talents.

Lee enters the culmination of the European Tour’s Race to Dubai in fifth position in the standings and drawn to play alongside England’s Tyrrell Hatton in the second-to-last group in the opening round of the DP World Tour Championship at Jumeirah Golf Estates in Dubai.

With No.3 Jon Rahm absent this week Lee is one of only six players who can claim the Order of Merit crown but needs nothing short of a victory and for Americans Collin Morikawa and Billy Horschel to not feature near the top of the leaderboard.

A win and the 2,000 points that brings would take him to 4,187 points for the season, meaning Morikawa would need to finish worse than tied seventh and Horschel would have to finish worse than fourth.

Given his rapid rise and Scottish Open victory in July, Scott sees no reason that the 23-year-old can’t become the first Aussie Order of Merit winner in Europe since Greg Norman in 1982 and first top-five finisher since Robert Allenby in 1996.

“He’s a super talent,” effused Scott.

“Actually, it’s funny how things work. I was talking with somebody who knows him the week before the Open Championship and he was asking me why Min Woo hadn’t done better.

“I said it could be many things, but it’s probably just a matter of time, he’s so talented. Then he won the Scottish Open in pretty fine style that week and obviously put himself in a great position.

“The talent is all there. He’s got the modern game, he’s got all the attributes, he just has to find the best way to apply himself to consistently challenge at that level like the Scottish Open.

“No doubt a really good week this week would do his confidence the world of good.

“He might win the whole thing and we see a new star of golf.”

In a week in which Scott will also wind down his 2021 schedule he too is looking to end the year in winning fashion.

Runner-up at the Wyndham Championship in a playoff in August and top-five two starts back at the CJ Cup, Scott defines his career by wins and wants to chalk up his first post COVID victory in his first view at Sea Island.

“I’d love to win the tournament,” said Scott, whose last PGA Tour title came at the Genesis Invitational in Los Angeles in February 2020.

“I was close a few months back and I feel like my game generally is in a pretty good spot.

“I think it’s good enough to contend here this week and I’d like to make the most of that.

“Playing the Seaside course yesterday was really enjoyable, the weather was beautiful and it’s a great place to be.

“I really liked the golf course a lot and looking forward to the challenge this week.”

This week also marks the end to the LPGA Tour’s 2021 season with three Aussies qualifying for the CME Group Tour Championship in Florida.

Minjee Lee enters the week ninth in the standings, Hannah Green 28th and Su Oh 42nd, Green eager to repeat her performance from a year ago when she finished runner-up or perhaps go even one better.

“I had a good result last year here at CME, finished tied for second,” said Green as she collected $US1 million for winning the Aon Risk Reward Challenge.

“It’s always nice to come back and play at practice round and remember when I made clutch putts and up and downs and made birdies.

“I feel like I’m a bit fresher than I was last week, which is always good. I’m looking forward to playing and then coming back home.

“That’s what I’ve done the last two times that I’ve won, I’ve gone straight onto a plane, so I don’t see why I can’t do it this week.”

Round 1 tee times AEDT

PGA Tour
The RSM Classic
Sea Island Resort, Sea Island, Georgia
Seaside Course
2am      Cameron Smith, Adam Scott, Joaquin Niemann
3am*    Matt Jones, Jim Herman, Keegan Bradley
Plantation Course
1.40am Danny Lee, Nick Watney, David Hearn
2am      Cam Davis, Branden Grace, Kevin Tway
2.30am Brett Drewitt, Taylor Pendrith, Ben Kohles
3.10am*             Jason Day, Webb Simpson, Justin Rose

Defending champion: Robert Streb
Past Aussie winners: Nil
Top Aussie prediction: Cameron Smith
TV schedule: Live 4am-7am Friday, Saturday; Live 5am-8am Sunday, Monday on Fox Sports 503

European Tour
DP World Tour Championship
Jumeirah Golf Estates (Earth Cse), Dubai, UAE
6.10pm Lucas Herbert, Laurie Canter
6.45pm Jason Scrivener, Nicolai Hojgaard
7.35pm Min Woo Lee, Tyrrell Hatton

Defending champion: Matt Fitzpatrick
Past Aussie winners: Nil
Top Aussie prediction: Min Woo Lee
TV schedule: Live 4pm-9pm Thursday, Friday on Fox Sports 505 (Featured Groups); Live 6pm-12am Thursday, Friday, Saturday on Fox Sports 503; Live 5.30pm-11.30pm Sunday on Fox Sports 503.

LPGA Tour
CME Group Tour Championship
Tiburón Golf Club, Naples, Florida
11.39pm             Hannah Green, Jennifer Kupcho, Matilda Castren
12.03am*           Su Oh, Jenny Shin, Elizabeth Szokol
12.51am             Minjee Lee, Brooke M Henderson, Nasa Hataoka
1.15am Lydia Ko, Jin Young Ko, Nelly Korda

Defending champion: Jin Young Ko
Past Aussie winners: Nil
Top Aussie prediction: Minjee Lee
TV schedule: Live 6am-9am Friday, Saturday, Sunday; Live 5am-8am Monday on Fox Sports 506

Japan Golf Tour
Dunlop Phoenix Tournament
Phoenix Country Club, Miyazaki
10.40am             Todd Sinnott, Taichi Teshima, Ryuji Masaoka
11.20am             Dylan Perry, Tatsuya Kodai, Katsumasa Miyamoto
11.35am*           David Bransdon, Daijiro Izumida, Daichi Sato
12.35pm*           Anthony Quayle, Young-Han Song, Akio Sadakata

Defending champion: Takumi Kanaya
Past Aussie winners: Graham Marsh (1976)
Top Aussie prediction: Anthony Quayle