The 16-year-old from Orlando is one of just three Americans selected to compete at the 2026 World Tennis Tour Junior Finals, taking place October 21 through 25 on outdoor hard courts at the Sichuan International Tennis Center in Chengdu, China.
The event is the same as the ATP and WTA Finals, but for juniors. This brings together the eight best boys and eight best girls in the world for round-robin play followed by a knockout round. Lee will be joined by fellow Americans Keaton Hance of Torrance, California, and Janae Preston of Henderson, Nevada, along with USTA national coach Felipe Mantilla.
Lee earned his place in the field with a season that would be hard to script. In July he won the boys’ singles title at Wimbledon as a qualifier, becoming the first qualifier to claim a junior major singles title since Noah Rubin in 2014, and doing it as the youngest player in the draw. He followed that with a run to the third round at the US Open Junior Championships and reached the second round of men’s singles qualifying at the same tournament.
What is on the line in Chengdu goes well beyond a trophy. The boys’ and girls’ champions each receive 1,000 junior ranking points, the same haul as a junior Grand Slam title. A stronger year-end ranking opens the door to higher-level professional tournaments in 2027 through the Junior Accelerator Programme.
There is also real money attached. More than $220,000 in travel grants will be distributed at this event, with each champion receiving up to $23,000 and additional funding going to all top-eight finishers. For juniors making the jump to the professional circuit, where travel costs can stall a promising career before it starts, that support matters.
The tournament has a strong track record of identifying players before the rest of the world catches on. Since its debut in 2015, alumni have included Grand Slam champions Elena Rybakina, Jelena Ostapenko and Florida’s own Sofia Kenin, along with Taylor Fritz, Casper Ruud, Holger Rune, Andrey Rublev, Qinwen Zheng, Leylah Fernandez and Lorenzo Musetti.
Lee is coached in Orlando by his mother, Tina Lee, head professional of the High Performance Academy at the USTA National Campus.
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