Michele Wie–You Go Girl

Last updated on: July 9, 2014 at 1:32 pm by Kermit Zarley

Michele Wie–You Go Girl 2014-07-09T13:32:18-07:00 Kermit Zarley

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

LPGA Tour player Michele Wie won her first major professional golf championship 2.5 weeks ago at 24 years of age. She won on a great golf course–Pinehurst No. 2 in North Carolina–the week after the men’s U.S. Open was staged there. So, the course was in tip top, major championship condition. And Michele won it in grand style. She held off No. 1 LPGA player Stacy Lewis to win the U.S. Women’s Open Golf Championship. She’s finally coming into her own with her first major win.

Michele Wie was born in 1987 in Hawaii and reared there. Like Tiger Woods, she was a child prodigy at golf. In 2000 and at the age of ten, she became the youngest golfer to ever qualify for the U.S. Women’s Public Links Championship. The next year, at age eleven, she won the Hawaii State Women’s Stroke Play Championship. In 2003, she won the U.S. Women’s Public Links, again the youngest to do so and still the youngest age to ever win a U.S.G.A. adult competition.

Michele turned pro at sixteen years of age, two years before the requirement of eighteen to join the Ladies Professional Golf Association (LPGA) in the U.S. She immediately started signing big endorsement contracts with sponsors such as Sony and playing the LPGA Tour with individual sponsors’ exemptions. Right away, at such a young age, she was having top-five finishes in some LPGA events.

So, the world of women’s professional golf had great expectations for Michele Wie. People thought she was going to be a female Tiger Woods. Like Tiger, she had a terrific golf swing. She soon started taking lessons from world-class golf swing instructor David Ledbetter, from South Africa. But I don’t think that had anything to do with her slump that started in 2006. She then sustained a wrist injury in 2007 which caused a necessary layoff and was a nagging problem for ensuing years. In 2009, Michele won her first LPGA event, in Mexico. In 2010, she won her second LPGA event, the Canadian Women’s Open. Her U.S. Open win last month was her fourth LPGA win.

Michele Wie must be very industrious. In 2012, she graduated from Stanford University, no slouch of a school, with a BA in communications. She did it in 4.5 years, taking a heavy load of 16-20 hours per semester. She attended classes in the Fall and Winter and played the Tour the rest of those years. Tiger Woods went to school at Stanford and didn’t graduate, so she’s one up on him in that department. (I almost went to Stanford instead of the University of Houston. I had a better offer for a golf scholarship at Stanford than I did at Houston.)

The next women’s major professional golf tournament is this week. Michele says she’s ready for it. It’s the Women’s British Open, and it’s being held at Royal Birkdale Golf Club in Southport, England. I hope she wins it. “But watch out for that weather, Michele. If that wind gets to howling, you’ll need that stinger. And stay out of that ferocious heather. It’s worse than that ice plant you know about in California.”

I never played in the British Open. One year I was exempt and didn’t go. In my day, it was too expensive to do that and the tournament purse was so small. It was only worth it for the top players such as Palmer and Nicklaus due to subsequent endorsement possibilities for them if they won. However, I did play one tournament in the old country. It was the 1969 Carling World Open. And it was held at Royal Birkdale. What a treat it is to play golf on those great courses in the United Kingdom. The golf courses are different there and very interesting. Those old courses require shots that we don’t have to make on our lush, U.S. golf courses.

And oh, did I say anything about the weather? The wind not only howls there, but the combination of it and the cold rain is biting. I experienced it on the third round in that Carling World Open. I thought I played good golf that day, but I shot a 77. I was so frustrated I wanted to spit in that big blue ocean I flew over to get there. I then told my wife, “I’ll never come over here again to play in a golf tournament.” Well, that was right. I didn’t. However, the next and final day of the tournament it was a perfect, sunshiny day, and I shot 69. I then told my wife, “I’ve changed my mind. This is a nice place.”

Previous Post

June 28, 2014

The Middle East Is a Mess that's Getting Messier

Next Post

July 14, 2014 Three Exciting Pro Golf Wins Yesterday

Browse Our Archives

Select a Category Angels Billy Graham Blog Description Book Reviews Christian Living Christianity Christology Church History Current Events Deity of Christ? Disarmament Eschatology Evangelicalism Ezekiel 38-39 Film Reviews God Golf Gospel Harmonization Health History Holy Spirit Incarnation? Interview Islam Israeli-Palestinian Conflict Jesus Last Empire Literary Announcements Major Championship Winners Masters Monotheism My Books New Testament Old Testament Politics Primitive Weapons Ryder Cup Science Society of Biblical Literature The Bible The Restitution of Jesus Christ Trinitarianism Trinity? Uncategorized Unconditional Love? War on Terrorism

Select a Month October 2026 September 2026 August 2026 July 2026 June 2026 May 2026 April 2026 March 2026 February 2026 January 2026 December 2025 November 2025 October 2025 September 2025 August 2025 July 2025 June 2025 May 2025 April 2025 March 2025 February 2025 January 2025 December 2024 November 2024 October 2024 September 2024 August 2024 July 2024 June 2024 May 2024 April 2024 March 2024 February 2024 January 2024 December 2023 November 2023 October 2023 September 2023 August 2023 July 2023 June 2023 May 2023 April 2023 March 2023 February 2023 January 2023 December 2022 November 2022 October 2022 September 2022 August 2022 July 2022 June 2022 May 2022 April 2022 March 2022 February 2022 January 2022 December 2021 November 2021 October 2021 September 2021 August 2021 July 2021 June 2021 May 2021 April 2021 March 2021 February 2021 January 2021 December 2020 November 2020 October 2020 September 2020 August 2020 July 2020 June 2020 May 2020 April 2020 March 2020 February 2020 January 2020 December 2019 November 2019 October 2019 September 2019 August 2019 July 2019 June 2019 May 2019 April 2019 March 2019 February 2019 January 2019 December 2018 November 2018 October 2018 September 2018 August 2018 July 2018 June 2018 May 2018 April 2018 March 2018 February 2018 January 2018 December 2017 November 2017 October 2017 September 2017 August 2017 July 2017 June 2017 May 2017 April 2017 March 2017 February 2017 January 2017 December 2016 November 2016 October 2016 September 2016 August 2016 July 2016 June 2016 May 2016 April 2016 March 2016 February 2016 January 2016 December 2015 November 2015 October 2015 September 2015 August 2015 July 2015 June 2015 May 2015 April 2015 March 2015 February 2015 January 2015 December 2014 November 2014 October 2014 September 2014 July 2014 June 2014 May 2014 April 2014 March 2014 February 2014 January 2014 December 2013 November 2013 October 2013 September 2013 August 2013 July 2013 June 2013 May 2013 April 2013

TAKE THE

Religious Wisdom Quiz

Who interpreted the "writing on the wall" for King Belshazzar?

Select your answer to see how you score.

Daniel Ezekiel Isaiah Jeremiah

Books by This Author Books by Kermit Zarley Blog

See All Titles »