The mainstream golf press has managed to miss an important development in Michelle Wie’s career saga.

While it’s been widely reported that Wie will not be playing in Japan’s Casio Open this year, the strong words of the tournament sponsor spokesman seemingly indicating that it’s Casio and not the Wies who decided she wouldn’t be playing have been all but completely ignored.

“It has been decided that she won’t play this year,” Casio Computers spokesman Yuichi Miyakawa told AFP. “Basically, we have determined that she cannot play fully to her potential because she has yet to recover from hand injuries suffered early in the season.”

That sure doesn’t sound like Michelle Wie determined she wouldn’t play. When’s Wie ever not pulled out of a tournament through her own spokesman? More tellingly, when have you ever known Wie to turn down a guaranteed no-performance-necessary big paycheck voluntarily either? And Casio reportedly paid Wie a million dollar appearance fee to play at this tournament in 2005 and almost $900,000 to play in 2006.

Apparently, Casio is the first sponsor to grow sick of paying Wie to show up and do nothing in competition. Casio’s man wasn’t finished taking veiled shots (or slinging backhanded compliments) at Wie either. He noted that she followed missing the cut by one shot in 2005 by finishing second to last and missing the cut by 17 shots in 2006.

“What we had really hoped in the beginning was that Wie would make the cut and battle neck-to-neck with the men,” Miyakawa told AFP. “We have not achieved results in that sense.

“But her presence drew attention from various people inside and outside the golf world. That was an achievement in itself.”

It doesn’t sound like it was enough for an achievement for Casio to let her play in its men’s event this year though. Maybe Casio doesn’t want to see Wie embarrass herself under their corporate logo. Oh well, at least Wie always has that “sparkly” Omega watch she loves so much.

Will Casio invite Wie back for another cool million if she rediscovers her ability to just do enough not to ever win in 2008? Certainly. But it’s still very significant that Wie finally appears to have been called on her play by someone.

Maybe, that sounds a wake up call in a Team Wie World that often seems completely disconnected from reality.

Of course, Wie’s vaunted PR team does not want anyone in the golf press to tell you about that.

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