Tiger Woods’ 23-year-old niece Cheyenne clinched her first win on a major professional tour at the Australian Ladies Masters, closing with a final-round 69 and a 16-under tournament total. Woods birdied two of her last four holes to hold off 17-year-old amateur Minjee Lee by two shots at Royal Pines in Gold Coast, Australia.

 

Cheyenne, who was an All-American at Wake Forest, has struggled to make the LPGA, missing the cut at Q-school finals last December. However, now with this win, she’s making a name for herself.

“I’ve been pro for two years and, for the majority of it, people just think of me as Tiger Woods’ niece, so now I have a game of my own and I have a title now, a win, which is exciting,” she said.

“It’s nice now to say to people that I can play and I’m not just a name. Growing up with the last name of Woods, there’s a lot of expectations and pressure and spotlight on you but I always knew that I was able to win. I always knew I’d be able to compete with these ladies, so now it’s kind of a weight off my shoulders because now everybody knows, not just me.”

Uncle Tiger, who is the half-brother of her father, Earl Woods Jr., sent her a congratulatory tweet:

Way to go @Cheyenne_Woods ! A great win and accomplishment. I’m so proud of you.

— Tiger Woods (@TigerWoods) February 9, 2014

Cheyenne won $51,000 and a two-year exemption on the Ladies European Tour. Her next start will be in next week’s LPGA Tour-sanctioned Women’s Australian Open in Victoria.

(Getty Images/Matt Roberts)