Michelle Sung Wie West (; born October 11, 1989) is an American
professional golfer
A professional golfer is somebody who receives payments or financial rewards in the sport of golf that are directly related to their skill or reputation. A person who earns money by teaching or playing golf is traditionally considered a "golf pr ...
who plays on the
LPGA Tour
The Ladies Professional Golf Association (LPGA) is an American organization for female golfers. The organization is headquartered at the LPGA International in Daytona Beach, Florida, and is best known for running the LPGA Tour, a series of weekl ...
. At age 10, she became the youngest player to qualify for a
USGA
The United States Golf Association (USGA) is the United States national association of golf courses, clubs and facilities and the governing body of golf for the U.S. and Mexico. Together with The R&A, the USGA produces and interprets the rules ...
amateur championship. Wie also became the youngest winner of the
U.S. Women's Amateur Public Links
The U.S. Women's Amateur Public Links Championship, often referred to as the Public Links or the Publinx, was a women's amateur golf tournament, one of 10 individual amateur championships organized by the USGA and first played in 1977. The USGA o ...
and the youngest to qualify for an LPGA Tour event. She turned professional shortly before her 16th birthday in 2005, accompanied by an enormous amount of publicity and endorsements. She won her first and only
major
Major (commandant in certain jurisdictions) is a military rank of commissioned officer status, with corresponding ranks existing in many military forces throughout the world. When used unhyphenated and in conjunction with no other indicators ...
at the
2014 U.S. Women's Open
The 2014 U.S. Women's Open was the 69th U.S. Women's Open, held June 19–22 at Pinehurst Resort Course No. 2 in Pinehurst, North Carolina. It marked the first time that the U.S. Women's Open was played on the same course in the same year as t ...
.
Early life, family and education
Wie was born on October 11, 1989 in
Honolulu
Honolulu (; ) is the capital and largest city of the U.S. state of Hawaii, which is in the Pacific Ocean. It is an unincorporated county seat of the consolidated City and County of Honolulu, situated along the southeast coast of the island ...
,
Hawaii
Hawaii ( ; haw, Hawaii or ) is a state in the Western United States, located in the Pacific Ocean about from the U.S. mainland. It is the only U.S. state outside North America, the only state that is an archipelago, and the only stat ...
. She is the only child of immigrant parents from South Korea who came to the United States in the 1980s. Her father, Byung-wook Wie, is a former professor of travel industry management at the
University of Hawaii
A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States, th ...
. Her mother, Bo, was South Korea's women's amateur golf champion in 1985, and competed in a
Miss Korea
Miss Korea ( ko, 미스코리아) is a national beauty pageant in South Korea.
Lee Seung-hyeon won the title on October 26, 2022.
History
The first Miss Korea competition took place in 1957 and was sponsored by the Korean newspaper Hankook I ...
beauty pageant. Her paternal grandfather, Sang-Kyu Wie, a resident of
Jangheung
Jangheung County (''Jangheung-gun'') is a county in South Jeolla Province, South Korea.
Slow city
In 2007 Jangheung was designated as a slow city. It was the first slow city designation in Asia.
Spot for filming
''Festival'' (1996) was filmed ...
,
Jeollanam-do
South Jeolla Province (; ''Jeollanam-do''; ), also known as Jeonnam, is a province of South Korea. South Jeolla has a population of 1,902,324 (2014) and has a geographic area of located in the Honam region at the southwestern tip of the Korean ...
, was an emeritus professor at
Seoul National University
Seoul National University (SNU; ) is a national public research university located in Seoul, South Korea. Founded in 1946, Seoul National University is largely considered the most prestigious university in South Korea; it is one of the three "S ...
. When she was born, Wie was a
dual citizen
Dual or Duals may refer to:
Paired/two things
* Dual (mathematics), a notion of paired concepts that mirror one another
** Dual (category theory), a formalization of mathematical duality
*** see more cases in :Duality theories
* Dual (grammatical ...
of South Korea (by ''
jus sanguinis
( , , ; 'right of blood') is a principle of nationality law by which citizenship is determined or acquired by the nationality or ethnicity of one or both parents. Children at birth may be citizens of a particular state if either or both of t ...
'') and the United States (by ''
jus soli
''Jus soli'' ( , , ; meaning "right of soil"), commonly referred to as birthright citizenship, is the right of anyone born in the territory of a state to nationality or citizenship.
''Jus soli'' was part of the English common law, in contras ...
''). She
renounced her South Korean citizenship in February 2013.
Wie graduated from
Punahou School
Punahou School (known as Oahu College until 1934) is a private, co-educational, college preparatory school in Honolulu, Hawaii. More than 3,700 students attend the school from kindergarten through twelfth grade, 12th grade. Protestant missionar ...
in Honolulu in June 2007. On December 19, 2006, she announced that she would be attending
Stanford University
Stanford University, officially Leland Stanford Junior University, is a private research university in Stanford, California. The campus occupies , among the largest in the United States, and enrolls over 17,000 students. Stanford is consider ...
, where there are family ties. Her paternal grandfather was a visiting professor, and an aunt and uncle are both graduates.
She enrolled in September 2007 as a freshman, but as a professional golfer, Wie was not eligible under
NCAA
The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, Canada, and Puerto Rico. It also organizes the athletic programs of colleges an ...
rules to play for
Stanford's golf team.
During her first three years at Stanford, she attended only during the fall and winter quarters, running from late September through mid-March each year.
She took leaves of absence during the rest of the year to play professional golf.
Wie completed her studies at Stanford in March 2012 with a major in communications. She participated in the university's graduation ceremony in June 2012.
Amateur career (2000–2005)
Wie began playing golf at the age of four. In 2000, at the age of ten, she became the youngest player ever to qualify for the
U.S. Women's Amateur Public Links
The U.S. Women's Amateur Public Links Championship, often referred to as the Public Links or the Publinx, was a women's amateur golf tournament, one of 10 individual amateur championships organized by the USGA and first played in 1977. The USGA o ...
Championship. Eight years later, Wie's mark was surpassed by fellow Hawaiian Allisen Corpuz, who qualified when she was five months younger than Wie had been when she set the record.
Wie remained the youngest player to advance to match play in this tournament, until 2014 when
Lucy Li
Lucy Li (born October 1, 2002) is an American professional golfer. She currently holds records as the youngest qualifier for the U.S. Women's Amateur and the U.S. Women's Open. She is the second-youngest qualifier for the U.S. Women's Amateu ...
surpassed her by one week.
In 2001, at the age of 11, she won both the Hawaii State Women's Stroke Play Championship and the Jennie K. Wilson Women's Invitational. The Jennie K. Wilson Women's Invitations is the oldest and most prestigious women's amateur tournament in Hawaii.
She also advanced into match play at the Women's U.S. Amateur Public Links Championship.
In 2002, she won the Hawaii State Open Women's Division by thirteen shots. She also became the youngest player to qualify for an LPGA event, the Takefuji Classic held in Wie's home state of Hawaii. While she went on to miss the cut, her record stood for five more years until it was broken in 2007 by 11-year-old Ariya Jutanugarn.
At the 2003
Kraft Nabisco Championship
The Chevron Championship is a professional women's golf tournament. An event on the LPGA Tour, it is one of the tour's five major championships, and has traditionally been the first of the season since its elevation to major status in 1983. Fou ...
, Wie became the youngest player to make an LPGA cut. She carded a 66 in the third round, tying the amateur record for a women's major championship and qualifying her to play in the final group of the championship. In June 2003, Wie won the Women's Amateur Public Links tournament, becoming the youngest person ever, male or female, to win a USGA adult event. Later that summer, she made the cut at the US Women's Open when she was still just 13, the youngest player ever to do so.
Wie was given a sponsor's exemption to the 2004 Sony Open in Hawaii, becoming the fourth, and youngest, female to play a PGA Tour event. Her second round score of 68 was the lowest ever by a woman in a PGA Tour event, though she went on to miss the cut in the tournament. While missing the cut by 1 stroke she bettered the 36 hole score of 47 men including 4 major winners and matched the scores of 15 more men including 3 more major winners. This in itself was an utterly incredible achievement by a 14 year-old girl. At age 16, 2 years later she shot another round of 68 in the men's tour Sony open and bettered the 36 hole score of 18 men including 2 major winners and matched the score of 9 others including 1 major winner.
She again played in the LPGA
Kraft Nabisco Championship
The Chevron Championship is a professional women's golf tournament. An event on the LPGA Tour, it is one of the tour's five major championships, and has traditionally been the first of the season since its elevation to major status in 1983. Fou ...
, finishing fourth. As part of the victorious U.S. team, she became the youngest woman ever to play in the Curtis Cup tournament. Wie started her 2005 season by accepting another sponsor's invitation to play on the PGA Tour at the
Sony Open in Hawaii
The Sony Open in Hawaii is a professional golf tournament on the PGA Tour, and is part of the tour's FedEx Cup Series. It has been contested at the Waialae Country Club in Honolulu, Hawaii, since the event's modern-day inception as the Hawaiian O ...
, where she again missed the cut. She played five more LPGA Tour events that year as well as a PGA Tour event, the John Deere Classic. It was her third outing at a PGA Tour event; she missed the cut by two strokes.
She entered qualifying for the
U.S. Amateur Public Links The U.S. Amateur Public Links Championship, often referred to as the Public Links or the Publinx, was a men's amateur golf tournament, one of 10 individual amateur championships organized by the United States Golf Association. The USGA typically cal ...
and became the first female golfer to qualify for a
USGA
The United States Golf Association (USGA) is the United States national association of golf courses, clubs and facilities and the governing body of golf for the U.S. and Mexico. Together with The R&A, the USGA produces and interprets the rules ...
national men's tournament, tying for first place in a 36-hole qualifier for the
U.S. Amateur Public Links The U.S. Amateur Public Links Championship, often referred to as the Public Links or the Publinx, was a men's amateur golf tournament, one of 10 individual amateur championships organized by the United States Golf Association. The USGA typically cal ...
. Wie made the top 64 in the stroke play rounds to qualify for match play.
She lost in the quarterfinals to eventual champion Clay Ogden.
On October 5, 2005, a week before her 16th birthday, Wie announced that she was turning professional. She signed sponsorship contracts with
Nike
Nike often refers to:
* Nike (mythology), a Greek goddess who personifies victory
* Nike, Inc., a major American producer of athletic shoes, apparel, and sports equipment
Nike may also refer to:
People
* Nike (name), a surname and feminine give ...
and
Sony
, commonly stylized as SONY, is a Japanese multinational conglomerate corporation headquartered in Minato, Tokyo, Japan. As a major technology company, it operates as one of the world's largest manufacturers of consumer and professional ...
reportedly worth more than $10 million per year.
Professional career
Pre-LPGA membership (2005–08)
When Wie turned professional, she was not a member of any professional tour.
LPGA Tour
The Ladies Professional Golf Association (LPGA) is an American organization for female golfers. The organization is headquartered at the LPGA International in Daytona Beach, Florida, and is best known for running the LPGA Tour, a series of weekl ...
membership age requirements require a golfer to be 18, although some players such as
Morgan Pressel
Morgan Pressel (born May 23, 1988) is an American professional golfer and golf commentator who played on the LPGA Tour. In 2001, as a 12-year-old, she became the youngest player to qualify for the U.S. Women's Open. She was the 2005 American Ju ...
and
Aree Song
Aree Song ( ko, 송아리), (born Aree Wongluekiet 1 May 1986) is a Korean professional golfer who plays on the LPGA Tour. Her father is South Korean and her mother is Thai. She was born in Bangkok, Thailand. She is a South Korean citizen, and h ...
have successfully petitioned for an exemption to join at age 17. Wie chose not to request an exemption and was thus only allowed to participate in a limited number of LPGA Tour events when given a sponsor's exemption from 2005 until 2008.
Wie played her first professional event in the 2005 LPGA Samsung World Championship, where she was disqualified from a fourth-place finish for signing an incorrect scorecard. A journalist,
Michael Bamberger
Michael F. Bamberger (born April 15, 1960) is a senior writer for the Fire Pit Collective and the author of multiple books.
Early life
Bamberger was born and raised in Patchogue, New York. He attended its public schools (graduating from Patchog ...
, reported a day after Wie had completed her round that she had illegally dropped the ball closer to the hole than its original lie. Wie would later go on to tally four top-5 finishes on the LPGA tour, including a second at the
Evian Masters
The Evian Championship, currently known for sponsorship reasons as The Amundi Evian Championship, is a women's professional golf tournament in France, played at the Evian Resort Golf Club in Évian-les-Bains. It was originally held in June, move ...
, a tie for third at the Kraft Nabisco Championship, and a tie for 5th at the
LPGA Championship
The Women's PGA Championship (branded as the KPMG Women's PGA Championship for sponsorship reasons) is a women's professional golf tournament. First held in 1955, it is one of five majors on the LPGA Tour. It is not recognized as a major by the ...
. In the initial
Rolex World Golf Rankings in February, 2006, Wie was placed third, behind
Annika Sörenstam
Annika Charlotta Sörenstam (; born 9 October 1970) is a Swedish professional golfer. She is regarded as one of the best female golfers in history. Before stepping away from competitive golf at the end of the 2008 season, she had won 90 inter ...
and
Paula Creamer
Paula Creamer (born August 5, 1986)''Current Biography Yearbook 2011''p. 128 is an American professional golfer on the U.S.-based LPGA Tour. As a professional, she has won 12 tournaments, including 10 LPGA Tour events. Creamer has been as high a ...
, but eventually dropped to 7th, partially due to a limited schedule.
2006 also involved several competitions against male competitors, starting with the PGA Tour Sony Open, where she again missed the cut, this time by four strokes. In May she became the first female medalist in a local qualifier for the
men's U.S. Open, but did not advance past the New Jersey final stage qualifier.
At the PGA John Deere Classic, after a 6-over-par first round, and 10 strokes off the projected cut, midway through round two, she withdrew from the tournament, citing heat exhaustion and tiredness.
Wie also played on both the European and Asian tours. At the
SK Telecom Open
The SK Telecom Open is an annual professional golf tournament hosted in South Korea and sponsored by the Korean cell phone company SK Telecom. The tournament was inaugurated in June 1997 as "SK Telecom Classic", and renamed in 2001. It is part of ...
, a men's tournament in South Korea, she became the second woman (after
Se Ri Pak
Pak Se-ri or Se-ri Pak ( ko, 박세리, ; born 28 September 1977) is a South Korean former professional golfer who played on the LPGA Tour from 1998 to 2016. She was inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame in 2007.
Career overview
Born in D ...
) to make the cut on the
Asian Tour
The Asian Tour is the principal men's professional golf tour in Asia except for Japan, which has its own Japan Golf Tour, which is also a full member of the International Federation of PGA Tours. Official money events on the tour count for Wor ...
, and in addition, reportedly received appearance fees exceeding the event's total prize money.
However, Wie finished the season with several disappointing performances in both male and female tournaments, including the Omega European Masters, PGA 84 Lumber Classic, LPGA Tour Samsung World Championship and the Casio World Open. At this point, Wie had played 14 consecutive rounds of tournament golf without breaking par and had missed the cut in 11 out of 12 tries against men and remained winless against the women.
In 2007, Wie's slump continued, including a four-month hiatus, due to injuries to both wrists, a disqualification, and several missed cuts and withdrawals. At the LPGA
Ginn Tribute Hosted by Annika
The Ginn Tribute hosted by Annika was a women's professional golf tournament on the LPGA Tour. Hosted by Hall of Fame golfer Annika Sörenstam, the event was played in 2007 and 2008 at RiverTowne Country Club in Mount Pleasant, South Carolina.
W ...
, she was 14 over par through 16 holes in the first round before withdrawing, citing the injury.
The withdrawal was controversial owing to the LPGA Rule of 88, which states that a non-LPGA member shooting a score of 88 or more is forced to withdraw and banned from LPGA co-sponsored events for the rest of the year.
Later that year, after finishing one stroke off the lead during the second round of the State Farm Classic, she was disqualified for walking outside of the official tournament area before returning to sign her scorecard.
Despite the lack of victories, Wie was ranked #4 in the 2007
Forbes
''Forbes'' () is an American business magazine owned by Integrated Whale Media Investments and the Forbes family. Published eight times a year, it features articles on finance, industry, investing, and marketing topics. ''Forbes'' also re ...
Top 20 Earners Under 25, with an annual earnings of $19 million .
Wie finally became eligible to play full-time on the LPGA Tour in 2009, when she tied for 7th place at the LPGA qualifying tournament in Daytona Beach.
LPGA membership (2009–2022)
After passing LPGA Qualifying School in December 2008, Wie declared that she still planned to play in tournaments against men. However, for the second consecutive year, she did not receive a sponsor exemption to play in the
Sony Open in Hawaii
The Sony Open in Hawaii is a professional golf tournament on the PGA Tour, and is part of the tour's FedEx Cup Series. It has been contested at the Waialae Country Club in Honolulu, Hawaii, since the event's modern-day inception as the Hawaiian O ...
where she had played four years in a row from 2004 through 2007.
Her first tournament as an LPGA member was the season-opening
SBS Open at Turtle Bay
The SBS Open at Turtle Bay was a golf tournament for professional female golfers, played on the LPGA Tour that took place between 2005 and 2009 on the Palmer Course at Turtle Bay Resort in Oahu, Hawaii
Oahu () ( Hawaiian: ''Oʻahu'' ()), als ...
where she shot 66, 70 to move into a tie with
Angela Stanford
Angela Gwen Stanford (born November 28, 1977) is an American professional golfer who currently competes on the LPGA Tour.
Amateur career
Born and raised in Saginaw, Texas, Stanford won the Fort Worth Girls Championship four times (1993–1996), ...
going into the final round of the tournament. Wie held a three-stroke lead with eight holes remaining, but ended up losing to Stanford by three strokes.
It was reported in early March, 2009, that Wie had left the
William Morris Agency
The William Morris Agency (WMA) was a Hollywood-based talent agency. It represented some of the best known 20th-century entertainers in film, television, and music. During its 109-year tenure it came to be regarded as the "first great talent a ...
, the Hollywood talent agency that had represented her since she turned pro in 2005, and would be signing with sports agency
IMG img or IMG is an abbreviation for image.
img or IMG may also refer to:
* IMG (company), global sports and media business headquartered in New York City but with its main offices in Cleveland, originally known as the "International Management Group ...
.
At the second major of the year, the LPGA Championship, she finished tied for 23rd, her best finish in a major since 2006. During this tournament she also scored her first recorded
hole-in-one
In golf, a hole in one or hole-in-one (also known as an ace, mostly in American English) occurs when a ball hit from a tee to start a hole finishes in the cup. A ball hit from a tee following a lost ball, out-of-bounds, or water hazard is not a h ...
as a professional.
However, the day after her final round of the LPGA Championship, she failed to qualify for the U.S. Women's Open due to a mediocre performance at a sectional qualifying tournament.
In August, at
Rich Harvest Farms
Rich Harvest Farms is a private golf course and country club near Sugar Grove, Illinois, about west of downtown Chicago. Built in 1989 and expanded in 1999, the 18-hole championship golf course is on an expansive .
Owner
Jerome "Jerry" Rich, th ...
golf course in
Sugar Grove, Illinois
Sugar Grove is a village in Kane County, Illinois, United States. The population at the 2010 census was 8,997, and in 2018 the estimated population was 9,803.
Geography
Sugar Grove is located in southern Kane County at (41.772529, -88.442374). ...
, Wie was a captain's pick for the United States team in Solheim Cup competition, where she led the American squad to victory with a 3-0-1 performance, the best record on the American team.
On November 15, 2009, Wie won her first professional individual tournament, the
Lorena Ochoa Invitational
The Lorena Ochoa Invitational was a women's professional golf tournament in México on the LPGA Tour. Hosted by Lorena Ochoa, the event debuted in November 2008 at the course where she learned to play, Guadalajara Country Club in Guadalajara.
...
in Guadalajara, Mexico, an event on the LPGA Tour limited to the top 36 female golfers in the world as determined by the LPGA money list and Rolex women's world golf rankings, posting a score of thirteen under par 275 for a two-stroke margin over fellow American
Paula Creamer
Paula Creamer (born August 5, 1986)''Current Biography Yearbook 2011''p. 128 is an American professional golfer on the U.S.-based LPGA Tour. As a professional, she has won 12 tournaments, including 10 LPGA Tour events. Creamer has been as high a ...
, and beating
Jiyai Shin
Jiyai Shin (Korean: 신지애 ''Shin Ji-ae'', ; born 28 April 1988) is a former world No. 1 ranked South Korean professional golfer who primarily plays on the LPGA of Japan Tour as of the 2020 golf season. She previously played primarily on the ...
,
Cristie Kerr and
Morgan Pressel
Morgan Pressel (born May 23, 1988) is an American professional golfer and golf commentator who played on the LPGA Tour. In 2001, as a 12-year-old, she became the youngest player to qualify for the U.S. Women's Open. She was the 2005 American Ju ...
by two strokes.
She then finished second in the
Ladies European Tour
The Ladies European Tour is a professional golf tour for women which was founded in 1978. It is based at Buckinghamshire Golf Club near London in England. Like many UK-based sports organisations it is a company limited by guarantee, a legal stru ...
season-ending
Dubai Ladies Masters
The Dubai Moonlight Classic is a professional golf tournament on the Ladies European Tour (LET). The event was played for the first time in October 2006. Its prize fund of €500,000 made it the fourth most valuable tournament on the LET. Between ...
tournament on December 9–12, 2009, shooting a 15-under-par 273, which put her three shots behind winner
In-Kyung Kim
Kim In-Kyung, also called In-Kyung Kim and I. K. Kim (born 13 June 1988), is a South Korean professional golfer currently playing on the LPGA Tour.
Amateur career
Kim was a member of the Korean National Team in 2003 and 2004 and won three tou ...
.
On August 29, 2010, she posted a three-shot win over a full field at the
CN Canadian Women's Open
The CP Women's Open (french: Open féminin du Canada) is a women's professional golf tournament managed by Golf Canada. It has been Canada's national championship tournament since its founding in 1973, and is an official event on the LPGA Tour.
...
, held at
St. Charles Country Club in
Winnipeg
Winnipeg () is the capital and largest city of the province of Manitoba in Canada. It is centred on the confluence of the Red and Assiniboine rivers, near the longitudinal centre of North America. , Winnipeg had a city population of 749,6 ...
, Manitoba, for her second career professional victory. In her next LPGA event two weeks later, she finished second in the 54-hole
P&G NW Arkansas Championship shooting 201 (−12) and losing to
Yani Tseng
Yani Tseng (; born 23 January 1989) is a Taiwanese professional golfer playing on the U.S.-based LPGA Tour. She is the youngest player ever, male or female, to win five major championships and was ranked number 1 in the Women's World Golf Ranki ...
by one stroke after giving up an overnight three-stroke lead.
On April 19, 2014, Wie won her third LPGA Tour event – and her first in the United States – the
LPGA Lotte Championship
The Lotte Championship is a women's professional golf tournament on the LPGA Tour. It debuted in April 2012 at the Ko Olina Golf Club in Kapolei, Hawaii.
The title sponsor of the tournament is Lotte, an industrial conglomerate based in South Ko ...
. She was four strokes behind
Angela Stanford
Angela Gwen Stanford (born November 28, 1977) is an American professional golfer who currently competes on the LPGA Tour.
Amateur career
Born and raised in Saginaw, Texas, Stanford won the Fort Worth Girls Championship four times (1993–1996), ...
after 54 holes but shot a 67 to Stanford's 73 to win by two strokes.
On June 22, 2014, Wie won her fourth LPGA Tour event and first
major championship, the
U.S. Women's Open
The U.S. Women's Open, one of 15 national golf championships conducted by the United States Golf Association (USGA), is the oldest of the LPGA Tour's five major championships, which includes the Chevron Championship, Women's PGA Championship, W ...
. She was tied for the lead with
Amy Yang
Amy Yang, also known as Yang Hee-Young ( ko, 양희영, born 28 July 1989) is a South Korean professional golfer, currently playing on the United States-based LPGA Tour and on the Ladies European Tour (LET).
Amateur career
Yang began playing go ...
after 54 holes at two-under-par. She double-bogeyed the 16th hole to fall within one shot of
Stacy Lewis
Stacy Lewis (born February 16, 1985) is an American professional golfer on the U.S.-based LPGA Tour. She has won two major championships: the Kraft Nabisco Championship in 2011 and the Women's British Open in 2013. She was ranked number one in ...
, but birdied the next hole and parred the last hole for a final round par-70 to win by two strokes over Lewis. The win, coupled with her second-place finish in the
2014 Kraft Nabisco Championship, resulted in her winning the inaugural
Rolex Annika Major Award. In 2014, she was also named one of ESPNW's Impact 25.
Wie will contribute to CBS Sports' multimedia golf coverage, including the Masters starting in 2020.
In May 2022, Wie West announced that she would be stepping away from the game following the 2022 U.S. Women's Open.
Controversies
From the beginning of her public career, Michelle Wie was the subject of controversy expressed by fans, media, peers, and other observers.
Performances in men's events
Despite the publicity her appearances garnered, Wie made only one cut in a men's tournament: at the rain-shortened 2006 SK Telecom Open on the Asian Tour. She made no cuts on the PGA Tour. After she missed the cut at the 2007 Sony Open by 14 shots, many sports critics began to doubt whether she ever would.
Wie's last appearance in a men's professional event was at the 2008
Legends Reno-Tahoe Open
A legend is a historical narrative, a symbolic representation of folk belief.
Legend(s) or The Legend(s) may also refer to:
Narrative
* Urban legend, a widely repeated story of dubious truth
* A fictitious identity used in espionage
Books, co ...
, an alternate event on the PGA Tour. Wie shot rounds of 73 and 80, missing the cut by nine strokes.
Use of exemptions
Professional golfers, fans, and media critics remarked that allowing Wie to compete in PGA events took away opportunities from more deserving golfers.
By late 2007, the criticism over the use of exemptions had extended to Wie's participation in women's events on the LPGA Tour as well. Wie declined to enter LPGA Tour qualifying school after turning 18 and therefore would have to depend on sponsor exemptions to play in future LPGA tournaments. This decision drew criticism from golf fans and commentators.
Such criticism ended after Wie qualified for the LPGA Tour through the 2008 qualifying tournament.
Caddie turnover
Early in her career, Wie employed many different caddies after her father stopped being her caddie in 2004. She created controversy when, after finishing tied for 26th at the 2006 British Open, her caddie Greg Johnston was fired over the phone by Wie's then-agent Ross Berlin. Johnston said he was "surprised and disappointed" at the firing and at the fact that "no one named Wie gave me the news."
Wie employed several other professional caddies after Johnston, and also returned to using her father for the remainder of the 2007 season, parting ways with caddie David Clarke after she missed the cut at that year's British Open. For much of 2009, Wie used on-loan caddie Patrick Tarrant, who worked for then-injured PGA pro
Brett Wetterich
Brett Milton Wetterich (born August 9, 1973) is an American professional golfer.
Wetterich was born in Cincinnati, Ohio. He attended Oak Hills High School and Wallace State Community College. He turned professional in 1994.
Wetterich was a PGA T ...
; however, at the end of that year but prior to her first LPGA victory, Tarrant recommended that she work with his friend Brendan Woolley, who continued as her exclusive caddie through the 2010 season. Woolley and Wie parted ways in December 2012 after finishing 64th on the LPGA Money List and earning just $158,546 that season. In January 2013, Wie employed Mark Wallington, who caddied for another LPGA professional and European Solheim Cup player, Sophie Gustafson, for three tournaments. Wie then began working with Duncan French, who has continued caddying for her exclusively since.
2007 wrist injury
In the first week of February 2007, it was reported that Wie hurt her left wrist in a fall while running.
However, little information was provided to the public due to concerns about her privacy.
Initially, her
public relations
Public relations (PR) is the practice of managing and disseminating information from an individual or an organization (such as a business, government agency, or a nonprofit organization) to the public in order to influence their perception. P ...
staff reported that she would be away from golf for 4 to 6 weeks
but the injury lasted until the end of May.
In response to the lack of information and prolonged absence,
Brittany Lincicome
Brittany Grace Lincicome (born September 19, 1985) is an American professional golfer who plays on the LPGA Tour. She currently resides in Gulfport, Florida.
Lincicome is one of the longest drivers in women's golf. In her rookie year, 2005, she ...
questioned whether Wie and her parents had
fabricated the injury in order to give her a reason to take a break from golf.
At the
Ginn Tribute Hosted by Annika
The Ginn Tribute hosted by Annika was a women's professional golf tournament on the LPGA Tour. Hosted by Hall of Fame golfer Annika Sörenstam, the event was played in 2007 and 2008 at RiverTowne Country Club in Mount Pleasant, South Carolina.
W ...
in May 2007, Wie's playing partner, Alena Sharp, questioned Wie's withdrawal from the tournament due to wrist injury.
However, Wie's other playing partner, Janice Moodie, stated that she heard Wie say "Ouch!" after hitting her tee shot, and confirmed "She didn't swing as hard from that point on."
In April 2008, she announced that she had three broken bones in her wrist, despite her agent's March 2007 announcement that the wrist was not broken.
A 2009 article about Wie's injury stated that the original misinformation resulted from Wie and her family failing to "understand or accept the severity of the injury," and that during the entire 2007 season, Wie played under a great deal of pain, taking four to five pain killers a day.
Personal life
In March 2019, Wie announced that she was engaged to be married to Jonnie West, who is Director of Basketball Operations for the
Golden State Warriors
The Golden State Warriors are an American professional basketball team based in San Francisco. The Warriors compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA), as a member of the league's Western Conference Pacific Division. Founded in 194 ...
and is the son of NBA legend
Jerry West
Jerome Alan West (born May 28, 1938) is an American basketball executive and former player. He played professionally for the Los Angeles Lakers of the National Basketball Association (NBA). His nicknames included "Mr. Clutch", for his ability ...
. They married on August 10, 2019, at a private home in
Beverly Hills, California
Beverly Hills is a city located in Los Angeles County, California. A notable and historic suburb of Greater Los Angeles, it is in a wealthy area immediately southwest of the Hollywood Hills, approximately northwest of downtown Los Angeles. B ...
. In January 2020, she announced she was pregnant with a daughter, and has expressed interest in eventually returning to competitive golf. On June 19, 2020, she gave birth to her daughter, Makenna Kamalei Yoona West.
Amateur wins
*2002 Hawaii State Open, Women's Division (67-71-70=208 −8), 13 strokes over
Cindy Rarick
Cindy Rarick (born September 12, 1959) is an American professional golfer. She competed as Cindy Flom in 1985 and from 1999 to 2001.
Amateur career
Rarick was born in Glenwood, Minnesota. In 1994, she was inducted into the Sahuaro High School A ...
*2003
U.S. Women's Amateur Public Links
The U.S. Women's Amateur Public Links Championship, often referred to as the Public Links or the Publinx, was a women's amateur golf tournament, one of 10 individual amateur championships organized by the USGA and first played in 1977. The USGA o ...
(Stroke play: 73-71=144 (E). 18-hole matches: 2&1, 2&1, 5&4, 6&5, 5&4. 36-hole final: 1 up over
Virada Nirapathpongporn)
Wie won several other Hawaiian local and junior events during the years 2000 through 2002.
Wie played her first professional event while still an amateur in February 2002. Prior to her first win in a professional tournament, on November 15, 2009, she played in a total of 80 professional events as either an amateur or a professional:
*66 against women: 64 on the
LPGA Tour
The Ladies Professional Golf Association (LPGA) is an American organization for female golfers. The organization is headquartered at the LPGA International in Daytona Beach, Florida, and is best known for running the LPGA Tour, a series of weekl ...
, 1 on the
Ladies European Tour
The Ladies European Tour is a professional golf tour for women which was founded in 1978. It is based at Buckinghamshire Golf Club near London in England. Like many UK-based sports organisations it is a company limited by guarantee, a legal stru ...
, and 1 on the
LPGA of Korea Tour
The LPGA of Korea Tour is a South Korean professional golf tour for women. LPGA stands for Ladies Professional Golf Association. LPGA of Korea runs this tour, not the American LPGA. It is one of the world's five leading women's golf tours.
Based o ...
.
*14 against men: 8 on the
PGA Tour
The PGA Tour (stylized in all capital letters as PGA TOUR by its officials) is the organizer of professional golf tours in the United States and North America. It organizes most of the events on the flagship annual series of tournaments also k ...
, 2 on the
Japan Golf Tour
The Japan Golf Tour ( ja, 日本ゴルフツアー機構) is a prominent golf tour. It was founded in 1973 and as of 2006 it offers the third-highest annual prize fund out of the regular (that is not for seniors) men's professional tours after th ...
, 1 on the
European Tour
The European Tour (currently known as the DP World Tour for sponsorship reasons), legally the PGA European Tour is the leading men's professional golf tour in Europe. The organisation also operates the European Senior Tour (for players aged fift ...
, 1 on the
Asian Tour
The Asian Tour is the principal men's professional golf tour in Asia except for Japan, which has its own Japan Golf Tour, which is also a full member of the International Federation of PGA Tours. Official money events on the tour count for Wor ...
, 1 on the
Nationwide Tour, and 1 on the
Canadian Tour
PGA Tour Canada, commonly referred to as the Canadian Tour, is a men's professional golf tour headquartered in Toronto, Ontario. The United States based PGA Tour took over operation of the tour on November 1, 2012, at which time it was renamed PG ...
.
Professional wins (5)
LPGA Tour wins (5)
Major championships
Wins (1)
Results timeline
''Results not in chronological order before 2019.''
^ The Evian Championship was added as a major in 2013.
LA = Low amateur
CUT = missed the half-way cut
WD = withdrew
NT = no tournament
T = tied
Summary
*Most consecutive cuts made – 13 (2003 Kraft Nabisco – 2007 LPGA)
*Longest streak of top-10s – 4 (2005 British Open – 2006 U.S. Open)
LPGA Tour career summary
*As of the 2022 season
*Wie was not a member of the LPGA Tour before the
2009 season.
* Includes matchplay and other events without a cut.
^Wie's $6,760 earnings at the 2013 Honda LPGA Thailand and $65,589 at the 2017 HSBC Women's Champions were considered unofficial under LPGA rules and are not included in yearly totals.
†Does not include non-member earnings from 2006 to 2008
World ranking
Position in
Women's World Golf Rankings
The Women's World Golf Rankings, also known for sponsorship reasons as the Rolex Rankings, were introduced in February 2006. They are sanctioned by eight women's golf tours and the organisations behind them: Ladies Professional Golf Association (L ...
at the end of each calendar year.
Professional record outside of LPGA Tour
This table shows Wie's earnings as a professional, excluding LPGA Tour events.
*Tournament shortened to 56 holes because of rain.
Dates are span of competitive rounds, regardless of whether Wie participated in all rounds.
MC = missed halfway cut
WD = withdrew
Margin = strokes behind winner or cutline, not applicable in case of withdrawal.
Team appearances
Amateur
*
Curtis Cup
The Curtis Cup is the best known team trophy for women amateur golfers, awarded in the biennial Curtis Cup Match. It is co-organised by the United States Golf Association and The R&A and is contested by teams representing the United States and ...
(representing the United States):
2004
2004 was designated as an International Year of Rice by the United Nations, and the International Year to Commemorate the Struggle Against Slavery and its Abolition (by UNESCO).
Events January
* January 3 – Flash Airlines Flight 6 ...
(winners)
Professional
*
Solheim Cup
The Solheim Cup is a biennial golf tournament for professional women golfers contested by teams representing Europe and the United States. It is named after the Norwegian-American golf club manufacturer Karsten Solheim, who was a driving force beh ...
(representing the United States):
2009
File:2009 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: The vertical stabilizer of Air France Flight 447 is pulled out from the Atlantic Ocean; Barack Obama becomes the first African American to become President of the United States; 2009 Iran ...
(winners),
2011
File:2011 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: a protester partaking in Occupy Wall Street heralds the beginning of the Occupy movement; protests against Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi, who was killed that October; a young man celebrate ...
,
2013
File:2013 Events Collage V2.png, From left, clockwise: Edward Snowden becomes internationally famous for leaking classified NSA wiretapping information; Typhoon Haiyan kills over 6,000 in the Philippines and Southeast Asia; The Dhaka garment fact ...
,
2015
File:2015 Events Collage new.png, From top left, clockwise: Civil service in remembrance of November 2015 Paris attacks; Germanwings Flight 9525 was purposely crashed into the French Alps; the rubble of residences in Kathmandu following the Apri ...
(winners),
2017
File:2017 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: The War Against ISIS at the Battle of Mosul (2016-2017); aftermath of the Manchester Arena bombing; The Solar eclipse of August 21, 2017 ("Great American Eclipse"); North Korea tests a ser ...
(winners)
*
International Crown
The Hanwha LifePlus International Crown is a :wikt:biennial, biennial women's professional team golf tournament on the LPGA Tour. Eight national teams of four players each (32 players in total) participate in the match play event.
History
It deb ...
(representing the United States):
2018
File:2018 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2018 Winter Olympics opening ceremony in PyeongChang, South Korea; Protests erupt following the Assassination of Jamal Khashoggi; March for Our Lives protests take place across the United ...
Solheim Cup record
Golf records
* The youngest winner (male or female) of an adult USGA-sanctioned tournament – Age 13 (2003
U.S. Women's Amateur Public Links
The U.S. Women's Amateur Public Links Championship, often referred to as the Public Links or the Publinx, was a women's amateur golf tournament, one of 10 individual amateur championships organized by the USGA and first played in 1977. The USGA o ...
)
* The youngest player to make a cut in an LPGA tournament and major – Age 13 (2003
Nabisco Championship
The Chevron Championship is a professional women's golf tournament. An event on the LPGA Tour, it is one of the tour's five major championships, and has traditionally been the first of the season since its elevation to major status in 1983. Fou ...
)
* The lowest round by a female in a PGA Tour event – 68 (2004 and 2006 Sony Open)
* The youngest player to play in
Curtis Cup
The Curtis Cup is the best known team trophy for women amateur golfers, awarded in the biennial Curtis Cup Match. It is co-organised by the United States Golf Association and The R&A and is contested by teams representing the United States and ...
history – Age 14 (2004)
* The first female to qualify for a USGA championship that is generally played by males - Age 15 (2005 U.S. Amateur Public Links Championship Pittsburgh sectional)
* The first female to make a cut on the
Asian Tour
The Asian Tour is the principal men's professional golf tour in Asia except for Japan, which has its own Japan Golf Tour, which is also a full member of the International Federation of PGA Tours. Official money events on the tour count for Wor ...
- Age 16 (2006 SK Telecom Open)
* The first female medalist in a
U.S. Open qualifying tournament – Age 16 (2006 U.S. Open Local Qualifying at Turtle Bay Hawaii)
See also
Female golfers who have competed in men's PGA tournaments:
:*
Annika Sorenstam
Annika is a feminine given name. It is the Swedish pet form of Anna, similar to Anneke in the Netherlands. It is also common in Germany, Finland and Estonia, gaining popularity after 1969 from the character of that name in the ''Pippi Longstockin ...
:*
Suzy Whaley
:*
Babe Didrikson Zaharias
Mildred Ella "Babe" Didrikson Zaharias (; Didrikson; June 26, 1911 – September 27, 1956) was an American athlete who excelled in golf, basketball, baseball and track and field. She won two gold medals in track and field at the 1932 Summer Ol ...
:*
Brittany Lincicome
Brittany Grace Lincicome (born September 19, 1985) is an American professional golfer who plays on the LPGA Tour. She currently resides in Gulfport, Florida.
Lincicome is one of the longest drivers in women's golf. In her rookie year, 2005, she ...
References
External links
*
*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Wie West, Michelle
American female golfers
LPGA Tour golfers
Winners of LPGA major golf championships
Solheim Cup competitors for the United States
Golfers from Honolulu
Golfers from California
Laureus World Sports Awards winners
Punahou School alumni
Stanford University alumni
American people of South Korean descent
American sportspeople of Korean descent
Jangheung Wi clan
1989 births
Living people
21st-century American women