Michelle Wie 24/7

[Diane]

Waz - I'm not taking that away from her, but it's old news.

[Wazmankg]

Originally Posted by Diane

Waz - I'm not taking that away from her, but it's old news.

So are her endorsement contracts and the wall-to-wall hype. I thought that's what we were talking about.

[rodney_c]

Well a 65 in the 2nd round has pretty much booked her place in final q-school, apart from signing scorecards etc.
It was the best round of the day, but Sun Ju Ahn shot a 2nd successive 66 to lead Wie by 3 at -12.
In 3rd is Saiki (top Japanese) and Nordquist at -7
Stacy Lewis is in 9th place at -3, and well positioned to progress (top 30) which stands at +2 halfway into the tournament.

[Bolt Fore]

Todays -7 under to claim 2nd place so far wasn't done with smoke & mirrors.

[Leaguegolf]

Wie is definitely on the right track to breeze through this part of Q-School. It gets tougher and she'll need to stay on form. She doesn't have many other options.

[droogy33]

Originally Posted by Diane

Droogy - I would have to agree with you, but it bothers me that it's all being done with smoke and mirrors. There is no real substance behind Wie's influence.

Hi Diane!

I think it is important to remember that Michelle's influence transcends golf and is not limited to what she does on a golf course.

In some ways, Michelle is a cultural phenomenon. What she, and other females like her, represent is a pervasive wish or demand to be taken seriously, or to be given the freedom or respect to do all the things men do, without question.

What makes Michelle huge or "important" is not necessarily her on-course accomplishments, but her potential to do something truly significant. This is what drives the Michelle Wie phenomenon.

No one believes Lorena Ochoa, who is currently regarded as the #1 female golfer in the world, has the slightest hope of competing against and actually beating the top male professionals. Lorena will likely never attempt to do so.

Michelle is different. Her swing looks like a top-flight male pro's. She can drive the ball 290+ yards. Because of this, there is a palpable sense that Michelle, not Lorena Ochoa, is the woman who can prove that women can compete against men, on equal footing, and emerge victorious. This is hugely important in today's society.

[Leaguegolf]

Equal footing? Emerge victorious? Wie has done far more damage than good trying to prove that she can compete with the men. That ship has sailed and sunk unless Wie elevates her game to Raise the Titanic proportions.

Wie needs to reinvent herself as a weekly contender and finally, a consistent winner on the LPGA Tour and stay that road until she's risen to the top of that heap. Once there, if she wants to try the men again, more power to her.

[JPsuff]

Originally Posted by Leaguegolf

Equal footing? Emerge victorious? Wie has done far more damage than good trying to prove that she can compete with the men. That ship has sailed and sunk unless Wie elevates her game to Raise the Titanic proportions.

Wie needs to reinvent herself as a weekly contender and finally, a consistent winner on the LPGA Tour and stay that road until she's risen to the top of that heap. Once there, if she wants to try the men again, more power to her.

Agreed.

I think part of Wie's problem with even making a cut on the men's tour relates to just what League pointed out. She has no track record from which to draw energy. She starts off with the best of intentions, but when it comes down to crunch time and she has to knuckle down and grind, there's nothing to reach for. There's no "been there, done that" well of experience.
If she would instead sharpen her LPGA game and actually win a tournament or two and get used to going through the step-by-step process of competing and winning, that would go a long way towards success with the guys.
She first needs to develop a sound beginning, middle and end game and develop a consistent and dependable method for putting herself in a position to succeed. The best arena for this in her case can only be the LPGA tour. She has the capacity to absolutely dominate there and if she'd just let herself succeed there first, then anything else she goes after in the future would have a far greater chance of yielding the results she seems to crave.

Focused baby steps will do more for her than leaping all over the map the way she's doing now.


-JP

[Wazmankg]

A 74 today puts her in 4th leading into the final day. She should be a lock to advance out of the sectional. She's about 10 shots inside the number as they stand. FWIW, Big Break's Ashley Prange is also in the top 30 after 3 rounds.

[droogy33]

Originally Posted by Leaguegolf

Equal footing? Emerge victorious? Wie has done far more damage than good trying to prove that she can compete with the men.

Don't get me wrong, folks. I'm only attempting to explain the Wie phenomenon. It's more about what she represents than anything else.

I wholeheartedly agree that Michelle and Co. have taken an incorrect approach to accomplishing her goals. It is clear, to me at least, that Michelle is not mature enough to deal with all the things she has been faced with. Give her some time and, as JP stated, some focused baby steps.

[Leaguegolf]

Originally Posted by droogy33

Don't get me wrong, folks. I'm only attempting to explain the Wie phenomenon. It's more about what she represents than anything else.

I wholeheartedly agree that Michelle and Co. have taken an incorrect approach to accomplishing her goals. It is clear, to me at least, that Michelle is not mature enough to deal with all the things she has been faced with. Give her some time and, as JP stated, some focused baby steps.

My question has always been about that focus, or lack thereof. Was it Wie's focus or her parent's focus that made her so good so young? Where was that focus against the men when she played so poorly down the stretch when she had chances to make a cut. Where was that focus as she was crashing and burning in events she had no business playing in? Has she now regained focus on her own or is it still mommy and daddy that are driving her? Sectional qualifying for LPGA Q-School should be a walk in the park for her. Let's see what happens in the final stage.

[rodney_c]

Originally Posted by Wazmankg

A 74 today puts her in 4th leading into the final day. She should be a lock to advance out of the sectional. She's about 10 shots inside the number as they stand. FWIW, Big Break's Ashley Prange is also in the top 30 after 3 rounds.

So is Briana Vega. After 2 rounds, Briana was practically a lock at -4. However she shot 77 in the 3rd round to go to +1, so a repeat of that and she wouldn't make it through, but I'd expect her to shoot the 75 or better that she probably needs to advance to final qualifying.

[Wildbore]

Originally Posted by JPsuff

Agreed.

I think part of Wie's problem with even making a cut on the men's tour relates to just what League pointed out. She has no track record from which to draw energy. She starts off with the best of intentions, but when it comes down to crunch time and she has to knuckle down and grind, there's nothing to reach for. There's no "been there, done that" well of experience.

Well thats part of the problem with most men players as well. So I don't see why Michelle Wie shouldn't be welcome.

Originally Posted by JPsuff

If she would instead sharpen her LPGA game and actually win a tournament or two and get used to going through the step-by-step process of competing and winning, that would go a long way towards success with the guys.

She has a sharp game. She had one slump and shes out of it now. She is competing harder than any other LPGA Tour player, and if it weren't for the slump and one other minor rules infaction, she would have a few wins. She is not looking for success with the men at this stage, shes just laying the groundwork for success.

Originally Posted by JPsuff

She first needs to develop a sound beginning, middle and end game and develop a consistent and dependable method for putting herself in a position to succeed. The best arena for this in her case can only be the LPGA tour. She has the capacity to absolutely dominate there and if she'd just let herself succeed there first, then anything else she goes after in the future would have a far greater chance of yielding the results she seems to crave.

Focused baby steps will do more for her than leaping all over the map the way she's doing now.

She has the capacity to dominate. If she continues doing what shes doing, she will dominate. Shes not jumping over the map, and she never was.

Originally Posted by droogy33

Don't get me wrong, folks. I'm only attempting to explain the Wie phenomenon. It's more about what she represents than anything else.

I wholeheartedly agree that Michelle and Co. have taken an incorrect approach to accomplishing her goals. It is clear, to me at least, that Michelle is not mature enough to deal with all the things she has been faced with. Give her some time and, as JP stated, some focused baby steps.

95% of Michelle Wie's golf is played against women. Her career is focussed on playing women's golf and becoming successful on the LPGA Tour tour. She doesn't need to reinvent herself because she has never tried to be successful on the men's tour. She has brief periods of experimentation, nothing more. I don't think she has ever thought that playing a couple mens event each year will lead to being a success on the mens tour. She has realistic goals, and those goals remain getting an LPGA Tour card and winning LPGA Tour events.

[Leaguegolf]

2009 will be the first year she wil have any of the goals you mentioned Wildbore. While she's off to a good start with advancing from the first stage lets face it, she should've never had to play the first stage to begin with. What lies ahead will be much tougher than what lied behind. Wie should be up to the task and many of us hope she is. The LPGA hopes as well.

[Leaguegolf]

I know the golf season is slowing to a halt and that Wie isn't grabbing headlines these days (or even a blip on golf's radar screen) but who ever thought that this thread would go almost a month with ZERO posts?

[mr3856a]

Originally Posted by Leaguegolf

I know the golf season is slowing to a halt and that Wie isn't grabbing headlines these days (or even a blip on golf's radar screen) but who ever thought that this thread would go almost a month with ZERO posts?

Who?

[rodney_c]

Originally Posted by Leaguegolf

I know the golf season is slowing to a halt and that Wie isn't grabbing headlines these days (or even a blip on golf's radar screen) but who ever thought that this thread would go almost a month with ZERO posts?

If you want the latest, her Autumn quarter has been loaded up with units, to make Winter quarter easier, although that is strange, given than q-school is bang at the end of Autumn quarter, yet another wie-ierd decision.
I think she'll get through q-school, because the standard isn't great and she is way more talented than most, but don't expect a Creamer-style runaway, because she just doesn't have the Creamer work ethic anymore.

[Leaguegolf]

I knew I could count on you rodney to bring this thread back to life. Like you, I figure Wie shouldn't have any trouble gaining her LPGA Tour card through Q-School. I'm more curious to see what she does with her card once she earns it. There's a lot of very talented young players that certainly aren't star struck by Wie anymore.

[rodney_c]

Originally Posted by Leaguegolf

I knew I could count on you rodney to bring this thread back to life. Like you, I figure Wie shouldn't have any trouble gaining her LPGA Tour card through Q-School. I'm more curious to see what she does with her card once she earns it. There's a lot of very talented young players that certainly aren't star struck by Wie anymore.

Which players were ever star struck?

[Leaguegolf]

Originally Posted by rodney_c

Which players were ever star struck?

Certainly not all of them but there was definitely a general feeling that Wie's global media army, the resulting worldwide attention, and yes, during a brief time, her golf game, gave many of the young players something to be star struck with.

Wie will not find today's LPGA the same LPGA she took by storm a few years back.

[rodney_c]

Originally Posted by Leaguegolf

Certainly not all of them but there was definitely a general feeling that Wie's global media army, the resulting worldwide attention, and yes, during a brief time, her golf game, gave many of the young players something to be star struck with.

Wie will not find today's LPGA the same LPGA she took by storm a few years back.

I think the lpga tour is actually very similar to what it was. Her game has changed since she got injured, and while the injury was to blame initially, it's her own fault that her game still hasn't returned to what it was, when actually it should be better than ever by now, if she commited to it.