More Wie, just the start...

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Wie can't fight the temptation of those sponsor paychecks.

"Wie played at the urging of her sponsor, Swiss watchmaker Omega, which sponsors the tournament. She said attending high school in Hawaii for one week before arriving in Switzerland hampered her preparation.

Wie plans to play in Japan later this year in the Casio World Open, where she missed the cut last year."

http://sports.yahoo.com/golf/pga/news?slug=ap-europeanmaster s&prov=ap&type=lgns
 

Don Wassall

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Wie came in dead last again, this time at the 84 Lumber event, one of the least prominent PGA tour events, which has a weak field. Despite the terrible showing, again the telecast focused exclusively on her every shot rather than the leaders of the tournament.


I almost feel sorry for Wie the way she has been exploited by Corporate America and her handlers. She's become a carnival show albeit an extremely wealthy one. Will the absurd hype she gets finally begin to abate somewhat? Probably not.
 

Solomon Kane

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"Carnival" is indeed the right word, DW.

It must be extremely frustrating for the men who win or finish well in these tournaments. They struggle to earn their tour cards, to make money, and to make a name for themselves on the tour--only to be ignored in favor of an overrated teenage Asian girl.

And then there's issue of the men who could have taken Wie's spot on all the past 11 tournament rosters. They need the opportunity and the money--not her.

According to the latest report, however, she still plans to continue to play in the men's tournaments. And so it goes.
 

Don Wassall

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Wie's traveling carnival show has now flopped in Japan, where Wie missed the cut and finished next to last in a Japanese Tour event. This is one of those times that the Caste System is instantly reaping the karma it sows. Michelle Wie is no Tiger Woods; a few more years of failure and the media may even have to begin toning down the Wie worship level a few notches.


[url]http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2006/golf/11/24/wie.ap/inde x.html[/url]
 

Bart

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How is the phenom doing? is she terrorizing the men yet?


[url]http://sports.yahoo.com/golf/pga/news?slug=ap-sonyopen&p rov=ap&type=lgns[/url]


HONOLULU (AP) -- Luke Donald didn't have much of a following Thursday, so he barely heard any applause even as he made birdies on half his holes for a 7-under 63 and the early lead at the Sony Open.


The crowds were with Michelle Wie. And there wasn't much cheering there, either.


"I heard no noise, really," Donald said. "I got one score update -- I wasn't sure if it was true -- 8 over after eight."


No, that wasn't true. She was 8 over after nine holes.


Playing the Sony Open for the fourth straight year, Wie hit into the water twice, the bunker twice, clipped two palm trees and didn't hit a fairway until the 15th hole. Headed for her worst score ever, the 17-year-old kept battling and played the back nine in even par for a 78.
 

Solomon Kane

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Wie misses the cut again, while another teenage Hawaiian--a male--excels.

Article follows below.



Another wipeout for Wie





By Doug Ferguson
ASSOCIATED PRESS

12:18 p.m. January 13, 2007

HONOLULU - Tom Lehman was on his way to the 12th tee when he glanced over his shoulder at the large crowd surrounding the 17th green and saw the girl he helped put on the map.
Michelle Wie is still only 17, and it was hard for Lehman to fathom how long she has been around.



Advertisement They played in a junior pro-am at the Sony Open five years ago. Lehman was so impressed that he called her the "Big Wiesy" because she reminded him of Ernie Els with that easy, fluid swing and carefree demeanor. The nickname launched the hype over the Hawaii teen, and she has done enough to bring in $20 million her first year as a pro.
Lately, however, the "Big Queasy" seems to be more appropriate.

Her fourth straight time playing the Sony Open brought her worst result. She had rounds of 78-76 to miss the cut by 14 shots, the widest gap between Wie and the weekend in seven tries on the PGA Tour.

Lehman always compared her to a thoroughbred. Now, he wonders if the reins are too tight.

"She's a lot like Secretariat," Lehman said Friday afternoon. "She has incredible talent, and you just need to let her run. Don't teach her how to do it. You worry sometimes about her getting too much coaching, or too much handling. Just have fun. Let 'er rip."

Wie didn't look like she had much fun the last two days at Waialae.

She had a bandage wrapped tightly around her right wrist from an injury three months ago at the Samsung World Championship. Wie wasn't sure whether the injury was to her tendons or ligaments, which is strange that she wouldn't know. And if it hasn't healed, odds are she needs a break from golf, and perhaps should have sat out this week.

Her short game looks better than ever, especially her putting. Her long game is as bad as it has ever been.

"I have a lot of game in me, it's just not showing now," Wie said. "Once it comes out, it's going to be good."

The images of Wie are no longer the precocious 14-year-old who shot 68 and missed the cut by one shot, or the 16-year-old who was poised to qualify for the U.S. Open until her putter failed over the final nine holes at Canoe Brook.

Think back to the John Deere Classic, where she was loaded onto a stretcher after withdrawing with heat exhaustion (emphasis more on exhaustion than heat). Or when she finished last in consecutive weeks against the men in Switzerland and western Pennsylvania, a scheduling fiasco. Or failing to break 80 in Japan.

Cristie Kerr once offered the most comprehensive perspective on Wie, summarized in one statement: When you have talent like that, controversy is sure to follow.

Controversy is giving way to pity in most corners.

There was hardly a trace of anger on the practice range this week about Wie taking away a spot in the field at the Sony Open. Gone was the disgust from players who thought her dream of playing the PGA Tour was a joke. Instead, they felt sorry for her as she struggled to hit the ball straight.

Almost everyone offered the same advice - stick with women's golf and find success, then come back and give it another shot.

"Whether it's Michelle or anyone else, if their goal is just to come here and make a cut, I don't think you're here for the right reason," Luke Donald said. "I would say, 'Go play the LPGA Tour and feel like you're going to win every week.' I think she has the talent to win many times out there."

Charles Howell III saw Wie frequently during her two weeks in Orlando, Fla., over the Christmas break when she worked with David Leadbetter. He saw an extraordinary amount of talent, a swing that doesn't look out of place on the PGA Tour, but also a senior in high school being stretched too thin.

"I would tell her to ask herself, 'What do you want to do?' Then choose that and go with it," he said.

It was no small coincidence that Tadd Fujikawa - a year younger and a foot shorter - became the youngest player in 50 years to make the cut on the PGA Tour, especially with all the attention on Wie the last four years.

She was all but forgotten when Fujikawa went birdie-par-eagle to shoot 66.

That isn't an embarrassment as much as an illustration. Fujikawa was playing in the Sony Open for the first time, with no expectations. He was having fun, trying his hardest on every shot, feeling no nerves until cheers on the 18th made it hard for him to breathe.

Wie was like that four years ago - nothing to lose, everything to gain, a constant smile.

Now she has something to lose - her image, mainly - and not as much to gain. Given the talent and the number of times she has played against men, not as many people would be as surprised to see her make it to the weekend.

Where does she go from here?

The plan is to enroll in Stanford this fall, although one has to question how much she will develop if her parents go with her. Having freedom is part of growing up.

As far as golf, the priority is getting healthy and finding a caddie. It hasn't been easy to find a capable looper to work a limited schedule, meaning her father was carrying the bag at Waialae.

Her 2007 schedule is not set, but there's a good chance Wie won't tee it up again until the Kraft Nabisco. The John Deere Classic has an open invitation to Wie, but don't be surprised if she doesn't show up this year.

Don't give up on her because she played poorly on the PGA Tour. The question now is whether she can still contend against the women.
 

Solomon Kane

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I know I sound obsessed with this issue,.... but

Wie withdrew from a tournament again (this time an LPGA event), blaming an injury, though some speculate that she withdrew because *if she had finished with an 88 she would have been banned from the LPGA for the year.*



Golf



May 31, 2007, 7:36PM
Injured Wie withdraws from LPGA event


By PETE IACOBELLI AP Sports Writer
© 2007 The Associated Press

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MOUNT PLEASANT, S.C.  Michelle Wie withdrew from the Ginn Tribute on Thursday after shooting 14 over through 16 holes, aggravating a wrist injury that sidelined her since January.

After Wie bogeyed the par-4 seventh, the 17-year-old star from Hawaii told an LPGA Tour official: "We're not going to play anymore."

Wie wore bandages on her wrists during the round and said she withdrew because she "tweaked" the injury and not because of an LPGA Tour rule that bans non-tour members for the year if they shoot 88 or higher. Wie was two bogeys from that scenario when she stopped.

"I had issues with my wrist," she said. "Shooting 88 is not what I think about."

While Wie struggled in her return, Annika Sorenstam was pleased with her even-par 72 after missing nearly two months because of a ruptured disk and a bulging disk. "I'm extremely happy with my round considering the circumstances," she said.

LPGA rookie Angela Park held the first-round lead at 6 under.

Wie's round included a 10 on the par-5 third hole, when her first drive hit a parked car and rolled down a roadway drain.

"It was actually quite funny," she said. "I was going to crawl down the drain to show people it was in play. But I couldn't fit."

After her provisional tee shot went way left into a pond, Wie's third drive landed in the rough and she went on to a quintuple bogey.

Wie looked defeated as she played her final hole, No. 7. She sent her approach shot way past the pin for a final bogey to move to 14 over.

As Wie headed to the tee, she was stopped by her manager, Greg Nared. The two chatted for a few moments  Nared even keeping Wie's mother, Bo, from joining the conversation  before they called an LPGA Tour official to end the round.

Wie walked onto the eighth tee, shook hands with playing partners Janice Moodie and Alena Sharp, got on a cart with her parents and caddie and drove back to the clubhouse as the gallery applauded.

Wie went to a private room to have her bandages taken off. She briefly had an ice bag on her left wrist before taking questions.

Wie had not played a tournament since missing the cut at the PGA Tour's Sony Open in January.

"It's a bummer," Sorenstam, the tournament host, said of Wie's withdrawal. "I'm sorry for her."

Things looked promising when Wie teed off on the 10th hole in the foggy South Carolina morning. Her drive landed cleanly in the fairway and she two-putted from about 40 feet for par.

Wie drove into a pond on the 11th for a bogey. She hit a tree with her tee shot on the next hole and made double bogey.

On her first par-3, the 14th, Wie landed in the woods right of the green. She chose to re-tee  after father B.J. reminded her caddie of that option  and again went right. A chip and two putts later, Wie had made a triple bogey and stood at 7 over through five holes.

Wie's problems continued on the par-5 16th as she pushed her drive into clumps of grass. She took relief about 80 yards behind her ball for yet another bogey.

Wie looked as if she had settled her game on the 18th hole with a long drive in the fairway and an approach to a foot for her only birdie.

Then came the third hole when Wie's round collapsed.

"It was a bad hole and everyone has bad holes," she said.

Wie hopes to play in next week's major, the McDonald's LPGA Championship.

"I want to be smart about" the injury, Wie said. "But I definitely want to get back playing, so I'm going to work on it."

Sorenstam couldn't have been more satisfied with her play. She made birdies on three of her final four holes.

Still, Sorenstam says she's searching for a balance between swinging aggressively and yet in control enough not to re-injure her back. "I'm happy to be back," she said. "It's great to post a score."'

Wie tried to sound upbeat after deciding to leave. "I know what to work on," she said. "The only way to go from here is up, so I'm feeling pretty good about it."
 

Don Wassall

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There's a lot of blame to go around for this pathetic spectacle, but of course in America no one in the system ever really accepts blame. The Caste media loved Wie and hyped her a thousand times more than she deserved, because she's a minority and because she wanted to play with -- and beat -- those hated white men. Wie's parents have been filled with greed. Wie has been mercilessly exploited, but she has willingly gone along with it because of her own greed.


Wie reminds me of some of the young girl tennis players who burned out so quickly -- Andrea Yeager and Jennifer Capriati come to mind, though Capriati did eventually make a short-lived muscle-bound comeback. Maybe Wie will eventually became a great player, but I hope not. She and the media are but one more example of the freak show that sports and society in general have become.
 

Burts

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Was there any mention of how this injury was incurred, or is it just possible that this was a ready-to-use excuse? I'm wondering, because just last week I read that Ms. Wie had plans to enter another men's event coming up shortly. And BTW, has anyone noticed that the women's rankings are barely mentioned anymore, now that the media darling is not included in them?
 

Bart

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Burts said:
Was there any mention of how this injury was incurred, or is it just possible that this was a ready-to-use excuse?


There may be more to the story of her injury.


[url]http://sports.yahoo.com/golf/pga/news?slug=reu-lpgawiedc&amp ;prov=reuters&type=lgns[/url]


WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A row between the world's two best known women golfers is raising the temperature for this week's LPGA Championship, with Annika Sorenstam saying Michelle Wie lacked class in dealing with a wrist injury.


Former world number one Sorenstam took issue with a decision by teenager Wie to withdraw from a tournament last week when she was 14 over par, citing a wrist injury, only to practice two days later.


"I just feel there's a little bit of a lack of respect and class just to leave a tournament like that and then come out and practice here," Sorenstam told a news conference.


{snip}


Adding intrigue to her withdrawal was an LPGA rule that any non-member who shoots 88 or worse in a round is barred from the tour for the rest of the season. Wie was two bogeys away from that ignominious score.
 

PitBull

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Last year, Wie made $19.5 million dollars (!) in endorsements. She only
made $750,000 in salary and winnings (which, I believe, includes some
appearance fees in the six figures). She has to stay on the ladies Tour in
order to make that kind of money in endorsements, otherwise her sponsors
would be embarrassed and cut off her contracts. This is only remotely
related to golf. She gets paid a lot to lie and cheat.
 

Solomon Kane

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I'm glad the great, classy Annika Sorenstam said something directly critical of Wie. Its about time someone on the tour did.
 

Burts

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Turned on the Golf Channel coverage of the LPGA Championship today, and who do you think was the first golfer to be shown? Could it have been one of the four players tied for first place, at -5? Maybe the two most talented young white girls, Paula Creamer or Morgan Pressel, both under par? No, the first focus was on a golfer who trailed the leaders by seven shots, and was on the border of the cutline. Need I say who it was?
smiley13.gif
 

Burts

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Like Solomon Kane, I'm sounding obsessed by this, too, but it boils my blood! In Friday's Washington Post, the article they ran on the tournament contained 16 paragraphs. 13 of the paragraphs were about Wie, who barely even made the cut!
If and when this girl ever wins a tournament, the LPGA will be all about Michelle, all the time, just like it is with the PGA, which is all about Eldrick, all the time. Somebody get me a barf bag!
 

Menelik

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It looks like Wie is finally receiving the negative press she deserves:

Bad sportsmanship
 

Don Wassall

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The media just can'treduce itsWie-mania. ESPN's website has a featured article on whether Wie is going to "apologize" to Annika Sorenstam at the U. S. Open this week, then when you click to go to the article, there's three more articles about Wie at the top of the page.


I feel badly for the actual contenders and the rest of the ladies' tour. This is their biggest event and the Caste System's favorite circus freak gets most of the attention. They have to be seething at this endless Wie hype. The corporate media is disgusting.
 
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Lets hope that Alexis Thompson isnt the next one to bump proven competitors out of the womens golf headlines.
 

PitBull

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Don't worry about that one, michiganblkman. Alexis Thompson doesn't get
paid $20 million a year in endorsement money for doing nothing. Besides,
corporations and the media whores are looking to increase sales, and the
white market for golf is pretty saturated. Hence the desire to promote to
Europe, Asia, Latin America, and the ghetto slums of America.

One thing the Michelle Wie case makes clear is that money isn't always
lavished on the successful. Her continued 15 minutes of fame and immense
wealth for accomplishing nothing just prove our points here, so the longer
she stays in the headlines, the better we look.
 
G

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michiganblkman said:
Should she (Wie) turn down the money if it is offered to her?

Of course not. You get what you take, not what you deserve.

That doesn't stop me from shaking my head and frowning when athletes get overpaid. It's most common in baseball and basketball. But I never thought I'd see the day when a woman would be overpaid to play golf.
 
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