Morgan Pressel gets an early Christmas present

Bummer for Duke. Guess Coach Dan Brooks will have to look elsewhere for another high-profile freshman wonder.

?Is Miss Wie now to play also? Thank you. dean

I don't know what the rush was for Pressel--but it looks like it will work out great for the LPGA. A year that opens with Pressel's first tournament in Hawaii--and I assume Michelle Wie will be there on a sponsor's exemption.

It is only right that Pressel be allowed to join the lpga early.

She may not be near the player Wie is, but she is still very good and more than capable of holding her own on the lpga.

She has some pressure though. She needs to be rookie of the year to back up her talk. It shouldn't be too difficult though, I don't think there is that much competition.
Brittany Lang, Ai Miryato, maybe but I don't think they will be that consistant.

My Prediction:
- Pressel to be rookie of the year.
- Pressel to win on tour.
- Pressel fans to say that this means that she is a better player than Wie, and us to have the whole Creamer-Wie debate again, except substituting the name Pressel for Creamer.
- Wie to make a pga cut and an argument to start about which is better, an lpga win or a pga cut.

Yeah, you know Baldwin will be flipping a coin now--who is my favorite blonde? Creamer, Pressel, Creamer, Pressel. He'll wake up in a cold sweat when he dreams that Wie won a big one, then reads the morning blog and sees that,indeed, she did win one.

I'd put my money on Ai Miyazato to be rookie of the year (though Pressel will probably win on tour). She was very consistant in the JLPGA and proved she can win on US courses at Q-school. She's a lot more seasoned than Pressel who has mostly won in match play.

Either way, Wie bashers will be happy.

I doubt that Wie would even consider petitioning the LPGA. I don't believe she wants to play more than 8 LPGA tournaments. Remember she is still a full time school kid. Also she wants to play a couple of PGA events.
Pressel winning on the LPGA in her first season is a long shot. A lot depends on how many tournaments Annika plays.
Alan M

Given a full season, and the number of weaker competitions, it would be a disaster for Pressel if she doesn't win one.

Norman you are a hypoctite. It's a disaster if Pressel doesn't win in her rookie season, but Wie who has never won anything can skate by on the strength of her... what, near misses. Your losing credibility and I think whatever remaining sanity you have left, friend, when you make statements like Pressel isn't near the player Wie is. You can certainly argue that Wie is more talented and has more potential, you can even argue that she is better than Pressel right now, but no one who isn't brainwashed would say that Pressel isn't in Wie's league as a player as you suggest. I'm not here to argue who is better or who will have the better career I'm just trying to keep you honest. I'm not a Pressel apologist, but really if someone made these unprovoked comments about Wie you and all the other Wie nuts would have fired off 30 pages of nasty replies by now.

Good for Morgan, I would want to avoid having to go up against Michelle Wie for Rookie of the Year honors too.

Good ducking girlie!

Matt,

Norman is not being a hypocrite-- Michelle can only play 8 LPGA tournaments next year, and I'm assuming she will be playing all the majors and the more high profile tournaments. Taking into account all her tournaments she will have a higher degree of difficulty.

Morgan Pressel will not be limited to just 8 tournaments, so she can pick to play in some EASY, sorry competition tournaments and have more of a chance to win.

I don't think it will be a disaster, but it won't look good if Morgan doesn't win at all. Especially, since she gets to play a LOT more tournaments than Michelle , and also she gets to play easier tournaments than Michelle.

I don't blame her for turning pro early either--I don't think she can take losing the Rookie of the Year award to Michelle Wie.

You don't think Morgan can take losing the Rookie of the Year Award to Michelle ??

Heck --Morgan can't even say Michelle's name in public without turning all red and getting that crazy look in her eye.

I think for her sanity its a good thing that Morgan will not be going up against Michelle for Rookie of the Year--I don't think losing ROY to Michelle is something Morgan can live down-she might get all Tonya Harding on everyone.

How is she ducking michelle wie? Ducking competition is what Michelle wie did her entire junior and amatuer career(or lack there of). Pressel just wanted to play the full season she earned by qualifying via Q-school(hmmm. earned that's a novel concept, maybe Michelle should try earning something one of these days). It was a conscious strategy by her to avoid losing to peers, because it would take the shine off her marketability. The she's only 16 argument is wearing a little thin as well.

This ducking argument is getting old. Saying Pressel wanted to join the LPGA this year to avoid competing with Wie for ROY is almost as rediculous as saying the Wie played in the British Open to avoid competing with Pressel in an amatuer competition. I don't think either of them have ever ducked anything. It's not in their nature.

Is it possible?

After losing many top players, Mercedes signs Michelle Wie, and the Mercedes Tournament of Champions becomes the Mercedes Tournament of Champions hosted by Michelle Wie--who plays four rounds with the PGA pros, not as a competitor, but as hostess. She would also be hostess and a competitor at the Sony.

Ai miyazato will win ROY very comfortably. I had chance to watch her play at women's world cup and Australian ladies masters. She led japan to inaugural women's world cup win and was runner up to karrie webb in Australia. Her final round 66 at women's world cup was argubly best round of the year. That course was played tougher than last year's women's open(It was meg mallon's words) and she still shot 66 in par 73 course despite missing two 3 footers. When she is on her game, she can match anybody in the world, including Annika.
Pressel would have had advantage if Ai didn't play several lpga tournaments this year but her experience in lpga this year obviously helped her to get accustomed to lpga and that showed in her Q school performance.
Now can Pressel stand losing ROY to Ai Miyazato after she was destroyed by Ai at Q school? That might be interesting too. At least if she lose to wie she might be able to find comfort from the fact wie is a foot taller than her. Can she stand losing to a player who is shorter than her?

Not everyone is saying that Morgan is ducking having to compete against Michelle--

I think people are just bringing up the point that if Morgan were to lose the Rookie of the Year to Michelle, she would be infinitely more upset than if it was the other way around.

Since Pressel has gone out of her way to bash Michelle Wie in the media, her pride would be at stake, and since the animosity is mostly coming from her,she has more of an emotional investment in beating Michelle.

Matt,
Michelle seeking tougher competition against professionals is hardly "ducking competition"

Besides, Michelle has won practically every amateur tournament Hawaii offers, which led to her looking to compete against the professionals.

If anything Michelle chose the tougher road than Morgan Pressel.

Let me think about this...

Which is tougher ?

Playing against the likes of

Annika Sorenstam, Laura Davies, and Lorena Ochoa at the age of 14 .

Or

Playing against Becky from Algebra and Jill from Home Economics at age 15.

That's a tough call, Chris, um I mean Matt!

Do you still call it a catfight when it's just the girls fans that are baring their claws? Meow!!

Hawaii??? Are you kidding me people are now arguing that winning state/local tournaments prepares you for playing against pros. Hawaii junior/amateur golf is a joke as is the argument that Michelle wie has taken the tougher road. I would argue that playing against your peers when you have everything to lose is a lot tougher than playing against pros when you have nothing to lose. Wie has been praised for losing for far too long now. Jerrod, don't forget that Wie never won the Women's Amateur, she lost both times she competed, so I guess Becky from algebra and whoever from Home Economics were a little too tough for her. Wie has since then had a calculated strategy not to play against her peers because losing would damage her marketability. playing against men is a neattrick, but lets face it she has no pressure to win or even make the cut what with all the apologists making excuses for her. She's so young, it was too windy, she wasn't used to the greens, she was studying for finals....the list goes on and on. Michelle Wie is a fantastic talent, with more potential then perhaps any women who has ever played the game, but at some point she will need to take the next step and win. That is the burden of having all that talent you must eventually do something with it other then amass a lot of close calls.

Matt,

You have got to be kidding. Michelle Wie played in the final group of an LPGA major at age 14! And you want her running around playing against little 12 year olds, who probably won't even be good enough to get golf scholarships to college when they're 17.

If Morgan Pressel will be as dominant in the pros as she was in the amateurs she will be the first to do so--since no top female amateur has transferred their success to the pros.

ONLY Tiger Woods has been dominant in both amateur and professional tournaments.

Matt said:
Norman you are a hypoctite. It's a disaster if Pressel doesn't win in her rookie season, but Wie who has never won anything can skate by on the strength of her... what, near misses. Your losing credibility
********************************

Matt, I am not a hypocrite. I am saying that if Pressel doesn't win one of the 25 tournaments or so that she enters in her rookie season it will be a disaster.
If Michelle were not to win in a full season of 25 (even if it were next season), I would say that was a disaster too.
However not winning in 8 events like Michelle this year, or not winning in 7 events like Pressel last year is not a disaster.

Here it is in simple words:
8 most difficult lpga tournaments in one season: no wins is not a disaster.
25 lpga tournaments in one season, where some have very tough fields and some easier fields, then not to win is a disaster, if you are of the standard of Wie, or even Pressel.

Matt said:
How is she ducking michelle wie? Ducking competition is what Michelle wie did her entire junior and amatuer career(or lack there of). Pressel just wanted to play the full season she earned by qualifying via Q-school(hmmm. earned that's a novel concept, maybe Michelle should try earning something one of these days). It was a conscious strategy by her to avoid losing to peers, because it would take the shine off her marketability. The she's only 16 argument is wearing a little thin as well.
*************************

I agree that Pressel is not ducking Michelle Wie. Pressel just want to join the lpga as soon as possible and she wants the money she earns from the start to count towards her end of year earnings, and she wants to be rookie of the year.
As regards ducking, it is ridiculous to say that Michelle Wie is ducking anything. If Wie wanted to duck anything she would be playing amatuer and junior events in relative anonimity, as opposed to taking on the best, in full view of the public.
Pressel hasn't ducked any competition either. Pressel has built her career through the amatuer ranks because that was the only available opportunity for her. She has become a professional and joined the lpga as early as she could, even getting a waiver for a few months.
Pressel wants to get to the top as quickly as she can. Her and Wie have that in common.
The main difference is that Wie was so good at a younger age, so she got the opportunity to compete at higher levels. If Pressel had those opportunities she would have taken them too.

As regards EARNING qualification for things, like Pressel did at q-school. Had Michelle Wie been a pro last season, she would have earned enough cash, that she would have been able to bypass q-school. You shouldn't be making a big deal of q-school. Either Pressel or Wie, are easily good enough to be on the lpga.

Since you were talking about EARNING qualification, Michelle earned qualification for an lpga tournament at 12 years old. By her performance at the US Open in 2004, she earned her exemption for the next year (top 16 are exempt). By Michelle's placing in this years lpga and british majors, I would hazard a guess that she would be due exemptions to those tournaments next season, as well as many more.

Jim does the name Paula Creamer ring a bell, just to give you the latest example. She was the 2003 Junior player of the year and the 2004 amateur player of the year and she won twice last year in her rookie year, oh yeah and once in Japan. Not a bad start on her profesional career, what with the handicap of having been a dominant amateur and all. Want to go back a little further. How about Nancy Lopez ever heard of her, yeah she won the USGA Junior championships twice was a member of both the U.S. Curtis cup Team and the World Amateur teams, oh yeah and she became one of the greatest female golfers of all time. Don't like the female examples how about Phil Micklson who won the U.S. amateur title to go along with 34 junior titles and three NCAA Titles and oh yeah he has two majors to his credit. And finally Jack Nicklaus who was a two-time U.S. Amateur Champion and went on to become the greatest golfer of all time. Before you start typing in CAPS get your facts straight. Tiger Woods was not the only player to dominate in the Juniors and dominate in the Pros. Going through junior and amateur golf is an extremely rewarding experience for young players and it teaches the cream of the crop how to win. These skills translate at any level and people like Morgan Pressel are better players for this knowledge. If you think for one second that Pressel or any of these other players beat up on 12 year olds to win their titles then there really is no hope for you. Michelle Wie fails to win a U.S. Amateur that Pressel wins and Pressel is critized for beating up on nobodies. Jim I don't expect to hear from you again, but if you do show your face again I expect some facts to back up your inane thoughts.

It sounds like quick success for an American woman out of the amateur ranks has been done twice, last year by Paula Creamer, and a quarter century ago by Nancy Lopez. It doesn't sound that common. Plus competition is stiffer than it was last year since Paula Creamer dodn't have to play against Paula Creamer. Annika will skip some tournaments, but Puala probably won't. Michelle Wie a year older figures to be tougher competition. This may be another year when rookies go winless on the LPGA.

I don't think it would be a disaster if MP goes winless--with Paula Creamer there every week there are no really weak tournaments. But it could be embaraasing after all she has said.

Last year Michelle Wie played only one weak event the SBS in Hawaii where she was T2. This year there are two Hawaiian tournaments, both are likely to be weak , and Michelle will probably play in both. If Morgan and Michelle both go winless, I expect a lot more criticism to be directed at Michelle than at Morgan. A winless Morgan Pressel would offer scant cover for Michelle Wie. We might, however, find the name of Morgan Pressel mentioned a lot less.

Matt said:
Jim does the name Paula Creamer ring a bell, just to give you the latest example. She was the 2003 Junior player of the year and the 2004 amateur player of the year and she won twice last year in her rookie year, oh yeah and once in Japan.
************************

Actually Paula won twice in Japan.
Paula had a great year last year. She had the great value of playing a full season on the lpga. That is why she improved so much. It has little or nothing to do with her amatuer career.
During Paula Creamer's successful amatuer career she did little or nothing on the lpga. In fact in the 9 events where Creamer and Wie played in the same tournament Wie had a better finish in all of them.
Then last year, Wie finished ahead of Paula Creamer in the first 4 events they played together, but anyone with golfing knowledge would have recognised that the gap was closing.
For the last 4 events that both Wie and Creamer were in, Paula finished ahead of Wie in 3 of those occasions.

Paula has improved dramatically in the last year. She has possibly even passed Wie at this stage. I think that Paula will probably have a positive head to head record against Wie next year.

What is the point of all this, you ask?
The point is: up until last year, Creamer didn't hold a candle to Wie. That was while Creamer was a proven amatuer and a proven junior.
Then when Creamer got her FULL TIME lpga experience of playing week in and week out on the lpga, that is when she improved, it is that experience which improved her game, lpga experience.

Amatuer wins are good for learning how to win in more amatuer tournaments. Amatuer wins do very little to teach winning at the next level.
I think the Paula Creamer example illustrates that.

Jim Coulthard said:
I don't think it would be a disaster if MP goes winless
***************************

Jim, there was 16 ONE-TIME WINNERS on the lpga last year.
I have no hesitation in saying that I think Pressel is a much better player, than many of those.
That is why I would be shocked if she doesn't win something. She has a whole season.

It is very different for Wie, who will be in 8 events, at various parts of the season.

If Wie plays a full lpga season in the coming years, then I will be very disappointed indeed if she were to go winless over a full season.

As I understand it, most of MPs success has been in match play events like the US Women's amateur. I'm looking for opinions since I've never competed in a golf tournament. In match play, once you get past the cut, you play one opponent at a time. One-on-one competition, it seems to me, is very different than competing against a whole field and would probably suit someone highly competitive like MP (as opposed to MW, who says she competes against her own record). Any opinions (not rants) on how much of an adjustment it will take for MP to succeed in non-match play tournaments?

If Michelle Wie plays in the LPGA Q-school, I will be very disappointed if she finishes 14 shots back.

Match play experience may be valuable if it gets down to the last few holes. As far as projections for LPGA members I certainly expect Annika to win and Paula--beyond that who knows?

norman you don't think Paula's Amateur career helped her at all? the amateur career was useless, she might as well have been hitting balls in her backyard all day. How do you think she prepared herself for the LPGA, gained valuable experience, learned to win, honed her game, that's right from her prior experiences. Paula was the Amat player of the year in 04 and she took those experiences, wins, losses, pressure, and used them to begin winning on the LPGA tour in 05. Of course her playing a full year on tour helped her, but she never would have been there in the first place without her amat career.

Matt

Michelle has done better in the LPGA majors than Paula Creamer even with not being as involved in the amateur tournaments.

Paula Creamer's highest finish at an LPGA major was 3rd.

Paul

In Michelle's very short amateur career she has had more success in Match Play tournaments.

She even finished in the quarterfinals of a men's amateur tournament that was match play.

MATT-WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU SMOKING!!

PUT THE PIPE DOWN!!

how can you people be so dense? It's very simple Paula 4 wins, Michelle 0 wins. Do the math.

Wonderful, Matt. "Do the math." Yes, it's all so simple.

Actually, it's all a matter of perspective, now isn't it? For instance:

"How can you be so dense, Matt? It's very simple, Paula 18, Michelle 16. Do the math."

Or perhaps:

"How can you be so dense, Matt? It's very simple, Paula $1m in earnings and sponsorship, Michelle $10m."

There are plenty of number to throw around. It's not at all simple, Matt. But the point of the blog is still the same - Pressel said she would win the Q-school. She didn't, but did earn a card and did receive an exemption. These are interesting times on the LPGA.

Wie is a dilettante. Morgan Pressel is a player.

Morgan's an unprofessional, rude cry baby.

In 2004 Paula Creamer had 1 2nd and in 2005 she had 4 wins.

In 2005 Michelle Wie had 3 2nds we have to wait to see what happens in 2006.

But like in investing, past results are not predictive of results in the future.

Matt said:
how can you people be so dense? It's very simple Paula 4 wins, Michelle 0 wins. Do the math.
***************************

I'm glad you are now recognising Paula's 2nd Japan win. Us Creamer fans were beginning to take offense.

By the way Paula won 2 from 25 events on the lpga tour.
Give Michelle 25 events in a season and then you can compare the number of wins on the lpga.

As regards the 2 Japan wins. Fair play to Paula for winning them. However 2 wins from 2 starts doesn't suggest a very high class field.
Don't forget Ai Miryato won 5 times on the ladies japanese tour this year, and her lpga record had been very ordinary before q-school. So well done to Paula's Japanese victories, but lets not overplay them.
Ai Mirayato won 5 times, but came last in a mens japanese event.

Comment from: Jerrod [Visitor]

** Good for Morgan, I would want to avoid having to go up against Michelle Wie for Rookie of the Year honors too.

Good ducking girlie! **

Among the many dumb comments from the Wie Warriors, Jerrod surely is in contention for dumbest of 2005.

Let's see if we've got this straight: Morgan Pressel puts herself in position to play full-time against the likes of Annika Sorenstam, Paula Creamer, along with tough-as-nails South Koreans and the clearly formidable Miyazako, the never-say-die Christie Kerr, Christina Kim and Lorena Ochoa, the numerous crafty vets who can always muscle into a victory, and the increasingoly hungry Natalie Gulbis-- and you fantasize that Pressel is ducking competition????

Riiiiight.

Now, let's look at the Wie calendar for when she turns 18, if Bivens decided to not accelerate Pressel's participation and therefore not accelerate Wie's participation.

Wie Birthday sometime in September or October, right? Wie is what, 16 now?

So it would be sometime in 2007 that Wie could go to Q-school, then be allowed to be on the LPGA tour -- after she was 18.

Pressel and Wie under that schedule would never be eligible to be rookie of the year in the same year.

So if Pressel had not petitioned for a waiver, and then Bivens had insisted that you have to be at least 18 to go full-time on the tour, the two fledglings would have emerged in different years.

So, no ducking by Pressel.

You could make a case that Wie is doing the ducking.

Jerrod, did Wie duck competition by not attending Q-school this fall and trying to get her card? What do you think and why?

-George

George,
You are saying that it is ridiculous to say that Pressel is avoiding by joining the lpga to play against the top players.
I agree with you. I am very glad you have come around to my way of thinking. Just recently you were saying that Wie was avoiding Pressel, by going to the British Open to play against the top women players. Now you seem to recognise that pitting yourself against the top players is anything but avoidance. I am glad you have changed your mind and come around to the more sensible view.

Just as regards q-school, and Wie not attending it, why would she attend q-school when she has no interest in playing full time on the lpga next season?
In any case, if Wie does near as well on the lpga as she did this season, she won't have to go to q-school, she will win enough money to secure her lpga tour card.

GEORGE YOU ARE OFFICIALLY THE DUMBEST PERSON ALIVE!

YOU ARE NOW SAYING THIS

Let's see if we've got this straight: Morgan Pressel puts herself in position to play full-time against the likes of Annika Sorenstam, Paula Creamer, along with tough-as-nails South Koreans and the clearly formidable Miyazako, the never-say-die Christie Kerr, Christina Kim and Lorena Ochoa, the numerous crafty vets who can always muscle into a victory, and the increasingoly hungry Natalie Gulbis-- and you fantasize that Pressel is ducking competition????

YET YOU'VE CRITICIZED MICHELLE WIE FOR THE PAST FEW MONTHS FOR DOING THE SAME THING!

You need about five promotions to even be considered an IDIOT !!

No I disagree Jerrod---

George needs about 12 promotions to get to the idiot level.

hypocrite:

1. a person who pretends to have virtues, moral or religious beliefs, principles, etc., that he or she does not actually possess, esp. a person whose actions belie stated beliefs.
2. a person who feigns some desirable or publicly approved attitude, esp. one whose private life, opinions, or statements belie his or her public statements.

If you don't understand the definitions George--

Ask your mom to help you.

I hate to say this George, but you are a phony.

I just read some of your previous posts, and now read your comments about Morgan Pressel above.

If Michelle Wie does something , you have something harsh to say about her, but if Morgan Pressel does the same exact thing you have only positive things to say.

Nothing you say from now on should be taken seriously.

Jessica Simpson is a Rhodes Scholar compared to George and Matt.

Lay off George you guys. Except for competition against men, Morgan Pressel isn't ducking anyone. She even plans to make her 1st LPGA pro event the season openning SBS in Hawaii, presumeably facing Michelle Wie on her home turf.

As far as ducking competition is concerned let us agree there is one rule for amateurs and another for pros. A few months ago both were amateurs, and whatever was said about ducking amateur events is irrelevant now that both are pros.

If anyone wants to look at Pressel vs. Wie what they do in LPGA events is what will count now. And give Pressel this much--she has less than 1/2 the age advantage over Wie that Creamer has. Creamer is 21 nonths oder than Pressel who is 17 months older than Wie. Any win this year for Pressel would move her ahead of Paula Creamer currently #1 on the list of youngest winners of multi-round LPGA Tournaments in history.

I think Morgan Pressel will be a success if she can do better than the last pre18 year old--Aree Song.

I have disagreed with George in the past, but like Norman I agree with him now. Indeed, I would not want to see undue pressure to win now put on young golfers-Pressel or Wie. If anything George's current position is favorable toward both Pressel and Wie--so I salute him for it.

February - May is not a long time for an early start. Sixth in q-school sounds pretty firm to me?... She has earned it and should play. I want to watch!

Thought that this was funny to me, but Morgan is Jewish. So she actually gets an early Chanukah gift.

** Comment from: Sheryl [Visitor] Nothing you say from now on should be taken seriously. ** Sheryl, you and the other Wie Warriors have so completely cornered the market on dumb statements, that if you started taking me seriously, I'd start to worry. ;> -George

** Comment from: Jerrod [Visitor] GEORGE YOU ARE OFFICIALLY THE DUMBEST PERSON ALIVE! YOU ARE NOW SAYING THIS Let's see if we've got this straight: Morgan Pressel puts herself in position to play full-time against the likes of Annika Sorenstam, Paula Creamer, along with tough-as-nails South Koreans and the clearly formidable Miyazako, the never-say-die Christie Kerr, Christina Kim and Lorena Ochoa, the numerous crafty vets who can always muscle into a victory, and the increasingoly hungry Natalie Gulbis-- and you fantasize that Pressel is ducking competition???? YET YOU'VE CRITICIZED MICHELLE WIE FOR THE PAST FEW MONTHS FOR DOING THE SAME THING! You need about five promotions to even be considered an IDIOT !! ** Jerrod, you prove how silly and dumb you are with every comment. The Pressel and Wie situations are not remotely comparable, other than the fact they are about a year apart in age. I'm typing slowly, Jerrod, Kyle, Mitch, and Sheryl, so even folks as demonstrably thick as you and the others are can get it. First of all, look at the context of the two ducking situations. I pointed out correctly that if Wie wanted to shut up Pressel once and for all, Wie should have skipped the British Open, competed in the Women's Amateur, and taken on Pressel head-to-head. I pointed out correctly that by doing so, Wie also took the risk that with a loss she would tarnish the mystique carefully crafted by B.J. Wie of The Girl Who Can Battle The Men. If Pressel won in a field that included Wie, that mystique would be shattered. Why? Wie supposedly can hold her own against the men. Therefore, beating fledgling female amateurs should be child's play. The Women's Amateur is a tournament Wie would be expected to win. It's the one place where a Wie defeat would finally be worse than expectations. Instead, Wie has chosen to engage in high-profile, high-pay, low-risk, and low-expectations tournaments. That's not a criticism. That's a fact. What's more, I applaud Wie for maximizing profits. I'll repeat again: None of us are rich enough, and that includes Bill Gates. I want us all to legally accumulate as much wealth as possible. I have said before that I do not expect Michelle Wie to join the LPGA tour full-time any time soon. In fact, it would be counter-productive at this time for Wie to do so. Let's say Wie did join the tour full-time via a Blivens waiver and getting her card or some other exemption. Then she would be subjected to the same analysis as all the other LPGA players. The speculation -- and the mystique -- would end. There would be a common way to compare Wie's success and failures to those of the dozens of other tour pros. Look at the best-of-both-worlds situation now for the Wie Warriors. The Wie Warriors often whine that Wie is struggling to win an LPGA tournament due to the rusty factor. Or the grass is all wrong. Or she's only 15. Or only 16. If she accomplishes anything such as a top 10 finish, it's a marvelous accomplishment. And this helps to preserve the Wie mystique. Look at the Pressel sitaution, which is completely different. Pressel has taken what I suppose would be called the Tiger-Paula route. Work through the amateur ranks. Q School. Card. Full-time pro, subject to the grind of "if it's Tuesday, it must be Tulsa, if it's Wednesday it must be Westchester, and so forth," playing eight weeks out of nine, or whatever the typical ratio is. People accused Pressel of ducking. I responded how could that be ducking when Pressel has agitated to put it all on the line, every week, against the best women golfers, along with people who can pop out of nowhere and make miraculous sand shots to snatch away a tournament win. So yeah, I suggest that Wie ducked Pressel at the Women's Amateur. The Women's British Open is there every year. The Women's Amateur, a Wie vs. Pressel head-to-head battle -- could only happen in 2005. If Wie wanted to put Pressel in the rear-view mirror, she had the opportunity to do so. But Wie eschewed that route. Pressel is going on the tour full time. If Wie really wanted to push, she could probably get on the tour full-time. But that puts the mystique -- and possibly millions of dollars -- at risk. -George

Wow, George!

Its time to get a life dude!

I know you can't get a woman to talk to you unless you give her your credit card number first but you need to get out more.

You are hopeless George.

You're saying Morgan Pressel is so brave for going up against LPGA pros--well what the heck has Michelle Wie been doing for the past few years and with MORE success.

I seem to remember Michelle Wie finishing 5 spots ahead of your beloved Pressel at the Kraft Nabisco a couple of years ago. (And yes Michelle is still YOUNGER- and BOTH were playing against pros)

Pressel's best finish at an LPGA tournament was
runner up-a feat Michelle Wie accomplished months before Pressel did.

People can see right through your hypocrisy- be a real man and stop embarassing yourself.

George,

I know you're getting punked left and right here but I just have to bring this up

You are saying Michelle Wie was ducking Pressel because she chose to play against Annika Sorenstam, Paula Creamer, Lorena Ochoa, Laura Davies, and other pros at the Women's British Open.

Are you saying that Morgan Pressel is better than all those pros ???

Because that's the only reason why I would think you would say Michelle Wie is ducking anyone.

Are you really saying Michelle is choosing the EASY path because she chose to play against Annika , Paula and other pros and not play against Pressel and other amateurs??? Are you kidding me ? You know Michelle finished in 3rd place at the Women's British Open right?

I would hope you are impressed with that since your kissing Pressel's butt for finishing 6th at Q-school.

George--I know you're slow but finishing 3rd at an LPGA event is better than finishing 6th at Q-school

You are the DENSE one here and everyone knows it.

George said:
First of all, look at the context of the two ducking situations. I pointed out correctly that if Wie wanted to shut up Pressel once and for all, Wie should have skipped the British Open, competed in the Women's Amateur, and taken on Pressel head-to-head.
....
So yeah, I suggest that Wie ducked Pressel at the Women's Amateur. The Women's British Open is there every year. The Women's Amateur, a Wie vs. Pressel head-to-head battle -- could only happen in 2005. If Wie wanted to put Pressel in the rear-view mirror, she had the opportunity to do so.

************************************

Firstly, I think you need to understand one very important thing.
Womens British Open = VERY IMPORTANT MAJOR TOURNAMENT.
Women's Amatuer = Not important at all in comparison.

Secondly, who said that Wie wanted to shut Pressel up? From Wie's interviews, she has said that she accepts there will be people against what she is trying to do, but she doesn't care what they think. Wie just doesn't care whether she has Pressel's approval or not.

George, you made a mistake. Tiger is one of 5 that never went to Q-School. The 5 earned enough money to rank high enough on the money list to by pass Q-School.

GEORGE

You are wrong about Morgan Pressel. If MP had followed the path of either Tiger Woods she would have stsyed an amateur until she won the Amajteur 3 times in a row. If MP had followed the path of Paula Creamer she would have waited until she turned 18 before going to Q school--and she would have had the opportunity to defend her Amateur crown at least once.

Michelle Wie is a full time high school student who lives in Hawaii. She is following the accepted route of not trying to play full time before she is either 18 or graduates from high school. There is also the matter of the LPGA limit on no more than two non-LPGA events that compete with LPGA events. This is not an issue for MP who has no interest in competing against men--but it is very important to Michelle Wie.

At the time of the British Open, Michelle Wie was being compared unfavorably to Paula Creamer. Are you suggesting that Wie should have dropped out of the British Open against Creamer so she could be sure to be able to compete against Pressel in the US Amateur if she happened to finish her British Open too late to be able to make what turned out to be a super early 7:15 tee time? The US Women's Amateur should have considered Wie's presence at the British legitimate enough to make arrangements to ensure that she would be able to compete in the Amateur. It is outrageous to suggest that it was Wie's responsibility not to compete in the British. In any case, I doubt that a win by Wie would have shut Pressel up even for a moment. Pressel would still rightly maintain that her 2nd in the US Open to Michelle Wie's 23rd was far more important than what happened in the Amateur.

INTERESTING FACT:

I have heard mentioned on many occasions that the US Women's Amatuer (which Pressel won) is supposed to be much better than Wie's Amatuer Publinx win.

People might like to note that when Wie won the 2003 US Amatuer Publinx, she beat the reigning US Amatuer Champion, Becky Lucidi, 5&4 in the quarter final.

Yes, norman. You can also mention the player whom wie beat at final, Virada Nirapathpongporn became women's amateur champion in same year. so Wie beat 2002 women's amateur champion and 2003 amateur cahmpion in her way to publinx title.

OK George. How about a friendly wager? Wie Warriors vs. Pressel People. Who will be the first to win an LPGA Tournament. Wie Warriors would have lost this bet last year to the Creamer Crew. But now Michelle Wie is a year older and Pressel is nearly a year younger than Creamer was. The loseing side acknowledges that Wie/Pressel won first.

How about number of LPGA tournaments. Who wins a LPGA tournament first in say 10, 20 or 30 tries?

How about who wins first when they are playing in the same tournament?

Jim I do not agree with that wager at all.
Wie will likely have 3 tournaments near the start of the year.
By the time Wie plays her fourth tournament, Pressel will have played 10 tournaments, if she takes the same schedule that Creamer had last year.

OBVIOUSLY that gives Pressel quite an advantage. Pressel gets 10 tries for Wie's 3 tries. I would expect that Pressel has a very good chance of winning in some of those tournaments. If she does, all it proves, is that playing lots of tournaments increases a players chance of winning.

Thanks to Jay for the information.

It really does make it difficult to understand how people think the Amatuer Publinx field that Wie beat was so much weaker than the Amatuer Championships, when it contained the 2002 and 2003 champions, and Wie had to beat both on route to the title.

If Pressel can win an LPGA tournament before Wie it will prove that she has won an LPGA tournament before Wie, and I would be willing to acknowledge that. It will be an impressive achievement for Pressel, and I would be willing to acknowledge that. I think it will be very impressive if either Pressel or Wie are able to win an LPGA tournament this year, bettering Creamer's current record as the youngest winner of a multi-round LPGA tournament in history.

If Pressel can win first, it will not reflect badly on Wie, rather it will reflect well for Pressel--and the same is true in the other direction.

Jon's bet would also be fine. Currently Michelle Wie has played in more events than Morgan Pressel, so even if Michelle Wie wins first, Morgan Pressel might still have a chance to win the bet--but Morgan Pressel would have to play very well to do so, and would probably need to beat Creamer's record in any case.

BUT NONE OF THIS WOULD INDICATE THAT EITHER PLAYER IS PERFORMING POORLY. IT IS ONLY SAYING THAT ONE PLAYER WOULD BE DOING VERY WELL.

It might show that a player is doing well if they win, but that is all really.

I think alot of people underestimate the affect of playing a full season, week after week on similar courses. It helps a player to get settled and used to playing on these courses. The players can get a mentality of, "if you don't win this week, there is always next week, or the week after that", and this takes pressure off.

If Pressel wins this season, it will be a very good achievement. However Wie will still have well over a year to break the record.

It doesn't really matter to me who wins first-what matters is who won the most when its all said and done.

I think Phil Mickelson was 5 up on Tiger on winning tournaments on the PGA tour--and Tiger caught up with him in a little over a year.

They also hyped Sergio as a rival to Tiger when they were younger and that didn't pan out either.

I was only suggesting a competition to replace the US Amateuur Michelle Wie missed. I wasn't saying one player would be forever better than the other based upon who won first.

has a far more impressive record in competition than Michelle Wie - whose handlers seem intent in having her compete aginst men hoping that she will make a cut one of these days. She will! But what does that prove? It's a bit like pitting Jesse Owens against race horses! But all of the publicity was aimed at just one thing - getting mega sponsorship deals - and boy have they succeeded! Anika has behaved with her customary class though all of this hype and gone on quietly - WINNING competitions - no gimmicks - just competing against her peers and winning 10 tournaments - boring in the extreme?

David Doig.

Before there was any hype about Michelle Wie competing against men there was hype about Annika competing against men. How can you call competing against men a gimmick and then talk about class and no gimmicks with Annika when Annika started the recent trend of women competing against men?

Anika did it once only - it had enormous impact. She performed wonderfully under intense pressure. She said it made her a better player. On the other hand Michelle is trying again and again - and when she makes a cut what will it prove? Only that she can put two good rounds together. She won't even be the first to make the cut - the Babe did it all those years ago.

The Babe was around 33 when she made the cut, and the men's field was pretty week apart from the top 10 players. Also this was SIXTY years ago !

Michelle is only 16 , and playing against a deep and stronger field of male players who are all using the latest hi-tech equipment.

David Doig said:
Anika did it once only - it had enormous impact. She performed wonderfully under intense pressure. She said it made her a better player. On the other hand Michelle is trying again and again - and when she makes a cut what will it prove? Only that she can put two good rounds together. She won't even be the first to make the cut - the Babe did it all those years ago.
*******************************

What will making a cut for Michelle Wie prove?
It will prove that she has got to the next level, and then she will be trying to take it to the next level again just like all of the other players. From your argument, what is the point in any player ever trying to make a cut on the pga?
The point is, they try to make a cut and become a better player so that they can win later on.

The Babe argument is a futile one. She made the cut in a different era with much lower class of competition. She only did it once, and when she did it, she missed the 3-day cut by miles. Michelle Wie has ambitions far greater than making one cut.

By the way, your first comment showed your bias. Annika performed wonderfully, by missing the cut by 7 shots. Of course Michelle missing the cut by 1 was a dreadful performance!

Comment from: Jim [Visitor]
George,

* I know you're getting punked left and right here *

How? By whom?

By Kyle? Sheryl? Norman? Certainly not you!


You Wie Warriors are thick-headed, to be sure, capable of about one thought per minute, if that high a rate.

Again, I'll type slowly and supply the Cliff's Notes version for you fanatics.

This is how my current comments started:

** Comment from: Jerrod [Visitor]
Good for Morgan, I would want to avoid having to go up against Michelle Wie for Rookie of the Year honors too.
Good ducking girlie! **

A summary of my points:

1. If Michelle Wie wanted to shut up Morgan Pressel once and for all, she could have entered the Women's Amateur and won that event. That was a tournament that Wie would have been the favorite to win. The risk, however, was that a loss at that event would have tarnished the Wie mystique, only a short time before the start of the carefully crafted B.J. Wie gambit for Wie to turn pro.

2. Pressel is ducking nobody since she is accepting the grind of going on the LPGA tour full-time.

So far, you Wie Kool Aid drinkers have been able to do no more than chant the Wie dogma and toss out a few stale insults. Maybe you could try your hand at some logical refutation.

But that would require you lot to put aside your coloring books for a few minutes and actually discuss the issues I raised. And you've proved time and again that's beyond your ken.

-George

NORMAN Annika missed the cut of one over 141 at the 2003 Colonial by 4 strokes with a 71-74 145.

GEORGE I think that other Wie Warriors as well as myself are now better able to understand you now that you have revealed that you use thoughts per minute as the basis upon which you judge a person's intelligence.

George-
You need to stop drinking that Pressel Prune Juice--
Your responses are so pathetic-is that the best you can do ??

What exactly has she done in the pro ranks-- yeah she finished 2nd once but the rest of her finishes have been mediocre at best.

Both Michelle Wie and Paula Creamer would clean the floor with her !

Pressel keeps on getting mentioned in the same breath as Wie and Creamer, and she hasn't even nearly achieved what those 2 have in LPGA tournaments.

I'm not impressed at all with her amateur success- who cares if she beats a bunch of little girls who will be working at a Dairy Queen next year.

Michelle and Paula have proven themselves more consistently on the pro circuit.

After her one runner up finish--Pressel only has a bunch of twenty something finishes.
Michelle and Paula have finished in the Top 10, Top 5 more consistently.

Pressel is probably the least likeable of all the upcoming LPGA golfers.

What a bad attitude , she doesn't play with class at all.

Pressel is the Tonya Harding of LPGA golfers.

Very talented but most likely to get someone beat with a lead pipe.

If you truly believe this George---

"2. Pressel is ducking nobody since she is accepting the grind of going on the LPGA tour full-time."

Then you must secretly ADORE Michelle Wie since she's been competing with LPGA players for years !!

You have got to be kidding if you think Pressel is tough George---

She cried practically every minute of that US Women's Open. Tough ??
How in the world will she make it if she can't even take a little bit of adversity on the golf course ??
That's what picking easy competition all her life did to her !

CHRIS

Tonya Harding was trailer trash with a physically abusive mother. Morgan Pressel is a spoiled princess with a doting grandfather. I fail to see much similarity.

""CHRIS

Tonya Harding was trailer trash with a physically abusive mother. Morgan Pressel is a spoiled princess with a doting grandfather. I fail to see much similarity.""

The lead pipe, my friend ,the lead pipe.

George said:
1. If Michelle Wie wanted to shut up Morgan Pressel once and for all, she could have entered the Women's Amateur and won that event. That was a tournament that Wie would have been the favorite to win. The risk, however, was that a loss at that event would have tarnished the Wie mystique, only a short time before the start of the carefully crafted B.J. Wie gambit for Wie to turn pro.

2. Pressel is ducking nobody since she is accepting the grind of going on the LPGA tour full-time.

So far, you Wie Kool Aid drinkers have been able to do no more than chant the Wie dogma and toss out a few stale insults. Maybe you could try your hand at some logical refutation.
***********************************

George, you want some logic, but according to you.
* If Wie chooses big lpga tournaments, she is dodging Pressel.
* But if Pressel chooses big lpga tournaments, she is class.

I find it very strange that you keep bringing up the Amatuer Tournament which clashed with the Womens British Open. No player worth their salt would choose an amatuer tournament ahead of a major. By going to the British Open, Wie did what every other player would have done in the same situation.

If Michelle Wie wins the SBS Open beating Morgan Pressel among others, will that be enough to shut Morgan Pressel up once and for all? I wouldn't think so--but if there is any chance, then I would assume a lot of people will be rooting for Michelle Wie.

It is good thing that Wie signed 10 million contract. She will have enough money to hire body guards.

Jim, you are right that Wie won't be able to shut Pressel up. Actually if Wie started to win lots of lpga tournaments, it would probably infuriate Pressel even more, and then Pressel would probably start bad-mouthing Wie's pga attempts even more. It would still be nice for Michelle to do it and take pressure off the rest of the year. Having said that, people would probably start calling her a one hit wonder, right after she won the event.

** Comment from: Dave [Visitor]

If you truly believe this George---

"2. Pressel is ducking nobody since she is accepting the grind of going on the LPGA tour full-time."

Then you must secretly ADORE Michelle Wie since she's been competing with LPGA players for years !! **

Umm, Dave.
Note my complete sentence, which included "LPGA tour full time."

Michelle Wie has yet to compete on the LPGA tour full time. She also, as of this day, shows no inclination to do so. It would not exactly be a shocker if Michelle never plays full-time on the LPGA. Not by lack of qualifications, but by her choice.

I've read the "responses" from Kyle, Norman, Dave, et. al. They do not address my main point, which is that Pressel ducked nobody -- as Jerrod claimed -- by going on the LPGA tour full time. Most importantly, Jerrod knows he made a dumb comment, because he himself has failed to bring up anything that supports his claim that Pressel ducked Wie.

Bottom line: Jerrod knows he was wrong and thick-headed when he claimed Pressel was ducking Wie.

I also note that none of you Wie Kool Aid drinkers can refute the notion that Wie has made a point lately of skipping tournaments she is expected to win. The most visible example of skipping a tourney was the Women's Amateur, which would have brought Wie head-to-head, potentially, against Morgan Pressel.

Bottom line: Wie's carefully wrought image would have been tarnished if she had entered the Women's Amateur and failed to win it. For the most part, Michelle has taken a delicate path to remain above the fray by entering tournaments in which there are low expectations for her to win.

-George (still waiting for somebody to start to directly address my points and to stop trying to play silly games of dodge ball)

** Sheryl [Visitor]
It doesn't really matter to me who wins first-what matters is who won the most when its all said and done. **

Sheryl -- You prove it IS possible to teach reason to the Wie Warriors.

You're saying that wins count in golf? Kind of like Paula Creamer winning four tournaments in 2005 and other full-time and part-time LPGA golfers not having any wins?

You'd better make sure neither Norman nor Coulthard see your post!

-George

** Comment from: Brian [Visitor]
You have got to be kidding if you think Pressel is tough George---
She cried practically every minute of that US Women's Open. Tough ?? **

Vince Lombardi cried after his Green Bay Packers won an unprecedented third straight NFL title in 1967 when they beat Dallas.

Joe Montana, SF 49ers quarterback who led his team to a a 4-0 Super Bowl record, cried more than once after emotional wins or heart-breaking losses.

Hope you're not saying that in sports, crying = weak. If you are, you may challenge some of your fellow Wie Warriors for silliest comments of 2005.

-George

George

Have they let you out of the dumb farm, or are you breaking the curfew again?

The examples you cited above (Vince Lombardi and Joe Montana) are the guys who cried after WINNING. Pressel was crying as she was LOSING. Big difference I would think. George, you are undermining yorself again.

As for Wie not playing LPGA full time. George, she has a small problem with that. She has to go to high school, a junior I believe. Surely, you don't advocate dropping out of the high school after her sophmore year to fulfill your irrational demands. George, what medications are you currently taking, if I may ask.

I am getting very concerned about your welfare, George.

George,

All your points have been addressed here--don't blame us if you're too dumb to pick them up.

George--

There's a difference btw. tears of joy because you just won!

And tears because you're having a bad day on the golf course.

I like how you conveniently quote certain segments of people's posts, with absolutely no regard of what was said in context.

I also brought up the point that Mickelson was 5 tournaments ahead of Tiger when they started, and look at their tournament wins now.
So what if Creamer or even Pressel wins first, what matters is the amount of tournaments won when everyone's respective careers are over.

George said:
I've read the "responses" from Kyle, Norman, Dave, et. al. They do not address my main point, which is that Pressel ducked nobody -- as Jerrod claimed -- by going on the LPGA tour full time. Most importantly, Jerrod knows he made a dumb comment, because he himself has failed to bring up anything that supports his claim that Pressel ducked Wie.
***************************

Actually George, I did address your main point right away. I agreed with you that Pressel is ducking nobody.
However, the same is true of Michelle Wie.
If Michelle Wie played in the amatuer, then it could have been said that she was ducking Sorrenstam, Creamer, Kerr and all the other top lpga players. To quote you, she could have been ducking "the likes of Annika Sorenstam, Paula Creamer, along with tough-as-nails South Koreans and the clearly formidable Miyazako, the never-say-die Christie Kerr, Christina Kim and Lorena Ochoa, the numerous crafty vets who can always muscle into a victory, and the increasingoly hungry Natalie Gulbis".

You have still failed to address the substantive point, which is that NO PLAYER, would give up a major to play an amatuer event.

Also, anyone who says that Pressel is ducking Wie, by joining the lpga early is just as wrong as George saying that Wie ducked Pressel by playing a major instead of an amatuer.

For George's other point, Wie is not avoiding events that she would be expected to win. She is simply playing at the highest level possible to try to learn as much as possible.

OK George. Let's try another wager. You and me. Who will win more tournaments in 2006? It will be total wins--we won't worry about how many tournaments a player enters. And any win counts whether it is on the LPGA or not. In case of a tie, no one wins the bet.

I believe that Michelle Wie is more likely to outwin Morgan Pressel than the other way around. Are you willing to go on record saying that you believe that Morgan Pressel is more likely to outwin Michelle Wie?

George, I think you should take Jim up on that bet.
Wie winning more tournaments than Pressel is really against the odds, and not something I would be willing to risk money on.
* Pressel will probably play about 25 lpga tournaments, to Wie's 8.
* For Wie's other appearance's she is doubtful to make cuts, not to mind win tournaments.

I like to back Wie, but I also like to be realistic. For Wie's 8 tournaments, Sorrenstam will probably win about 4 of those.

Just to clarify the last comment. When I said Wie is doubtful to make cuts, I meant there is doubt as to whether she will make the cuts, not that she is unlikely to do so.

I don't think you need to be that careful, Norman. If I were a betting man, I would bet against Wie making the cut. It simply is extremely difficult to make any PGA tour cuts. Wie would have to make a tremendous progress in her game and also to hold it together mentally and emotionally. I think for the next year, as long as she makes progress in her results, she should be happy. On the other hand, I think it would be nice to win a LPGA tournament next year for her, to lessen the criticism of her lack of winning efforts. Again, Winning a LPGA tournament as a 16 year old would be an unprecedented accomplishment.

Actually Michelle Wie is guaranteed to make the Sony Open cut unless they can find at least 70 other players willing to compete against her. Just kidding--but lots of top players are skipping the Mercedes Tournament of Champions, and they almost certainly will skip the Sony as well. There may also be some PGA players who don't want to take a chance of being beaten by a 16 year old girl in what will be an historic tournament if Michelle does make the cut. Thus it remains to be seen how strong the field will be.

Given the improvement in her game, I would say another performance like her 2004 Sony and she will make the cut, another one like her 2005 Sony and she will miss the cut, and another one like her 2005 John Deere and she certainly has a good chance. It looks as if her making the Sony cut might be pretty much a 50-50 proposition. Other PGA Tournament cuts should prove more difficult to make.

Whether she makes the Sony cut or not, a good performance should set her up to do well in other tournaments early next year. In particular, there are the two LPGA Tournaments in Hawaii next year where Michelle Wie might well be the favorite if Annikia doesn't show. At the start of the year in Hawaii, Michelle may well be favored over Paula.

Jon, I understand your point about how difficult it is to make a cut.

I'm not overly optimistic myself. 50-50 sounds pretty right to me for the Sony. I don't share Jim's optimism about players skipping the tournament.
Even if many top players skipped it, what effect would it have. Maybe the cut would go up by 1, if that. I think if she plays her best stuff, she will make the cut, and have a top 68 finish.

50-50 is pretty optimistic. The general consensus seems to be that she has a better chance to winning an LPGA event this year than making the cut at a PGA event. But giving past results, the opposite may be true. In 3 PGA events, she has come close to making the cut twice. She's played a lot more LPGA events and has not yet really been in contention down the stretch.

Paul, I take your point. I think the biggest thing with the lpga events is that she has 8 attempts. How many pga attempts will she have. Probably 2 again this year.
On the other side of it, if Annika hits form, that should take winning out of the equation for Michelle and the other players, so maybe that leaves about 4 possibilities on the lpga.
I think her best hope is in one of the early Hawaii tournaments.

A pga cut, is very possible but things can go wrong so easy, with one mistake much more costly than it would be on the lpga.

I wonder what events she will participate in this year other than 8 LPGA and, say, 2 PGA events. Those could be her biggest opportunity for a women's event win or men's event cut. Clearly amatuer events are out, that leaves:

- More asian men's events
- A Japanese or Korean women's event (could be an opportunity for a win especially with Ai-Chan absent)
- Trying to qualify for the Open (or some other European men's event)
- A European women's event

Michelle will undoubtedly try to qualify for the US Men's Open like she did this year(with very little success). I would expect her to play quite a few PGA events. Overall I would expect a fairly even balance between men's and women's events.
Morgan Pressel going pro, and the amount of focus upon her changes things for MW. Until MP wins, it will be less critical for Michelle to win--but winning an Asian women's event will now count for less, while losing could be more harmful. Add to that the fact that the real interest lies in Michelle against the guys--I don't see her playing many if any Asian ladies events. She could play in some European events after the women's British Open. These could be either men's or women's events. It might depend upon the degree of hostility to women from men on the European Tour.

I don't expect Michelle to play more than two or three PGA events this year. I seem to remember her saying that, plus it would probably be overdoing it. She should save some of her PGA attempts for future years as her game improves. I do, however, think she will try some men's events outside the US.

I agree that a loss in an Asian woman's event may be harmful, but, IMHO, she needs to try some more women's events. It would be a mistake to avoid events that she has a good chance of winning for fear of criticism if she loses.

I agree that 2 or 3 pga events is likely to be the maximum for MW.

I think she will be very likely to compete in Korea next year. If it is a women's event, she would be a big favourite to win.
I think it would be more likely a mens event, because a woman has made a cut in a mens event there before, and actually finished 10th.
Given that, I think Michelle could do well in a Korean mens tournament.
Keep in mind though, that Pak finished 11 strokes off the winner, so a win is not likely.

She will also probably play in Japan again.

The risk for Michelle Wie was that she'd lose in the first round of the U.S. Women's Amateur. if she's so keen on playing in mens events why doesn't she have a sex change operation? This puts it into perspective IMO - if you want to play like a man become one!

David Doig,
What are you on about?

If Wie played the US Women's Amatuer she would have had to skip the Women's British Open, which is a major event. She finished 3rd there. Had she played in the amatuer and won every match and thrashed every opponent on the way, that result still would have been nowhere near as good as finishing 3rd in a major.
No player would ever play an amatuer event instead of a major.

As regards this sex change operation, why would she get a sex change?
She wants to be who she is, she hasn't any desire to be a man.
She simply wants to play against the best players in the world, who happen to be men.

"If you want to play like a man become one"? That's laughable. You don't need to be a man to swing a golf club. Why do you think half the men on the PGA tour need to wear a bra?

I find this thread amusing. Everyone's got to admit that the LPGA has a lot more exciting new players on the tour than the PGA. Besides Pressel and Wie, there's rookies Miyazato and Lang as well as Creamer, and of course they're all out there to challenge Annika who's basically the best woman player ever. For people to be grousing about who's better, or will Pressel win an event and become ROY, I think is rather silly.

I hope her management has come up with a long-term strategy for Morgan, as I'd hate to see her play too many events early on and start pressing for a win, which frequently shatters a player's game. The kid's not even 18 yet, so to set expectations about what she'll do this year is unrealistic to say the least. I'd say the biggest thing she has to work on is the emotional aspect of her game. She's fun to watch because she has so much heart (well, she's cute too), but it's not so good for one's psyche to be crying multiple times during every round.

The most exciting event in men's or women's golf last year was the US Women's Open, so here's hoping we see a lot more events like that in 2006 and in the years to come. I say "you go, girl" to all of them.