Tim,
It was a good decision to not accept the matchplay exemption, but she won't be kneeling to Annika begginging her forgiveness.
Annika just needs to cop herself on. She has disgraced the womens tour with her pettiness looking for an apology. Do you think male golfers would go around looking for apologies from each other?

That's why the women should stay on their own tour and not try to be crossing over to the mens tour.
They simply don't have the maturity that the men have.
Honestly Annika grow up and cop yourself on.

"Cop yourself on" must be one of those hip phrases I don't understand.

Dan--Annika, a disgrace to the LPGA tour? You just might be on to something. Winning tournaments, hosting events and mentoring young golfers all with class and dignity is inexcusable. Top that off by expecting some common decency and manners from a spoiled brat who has never accomplished a thing on the LPGA tour and regards it as a second class outfit is downright embarrassing. Annika should be ashamed of herself.

I actually agree with the second half of your post, no not the part where you insult the entire female population by labeling them too immature to compete with men, but the part where they should stay and play on their own tour--Perhaps this should be directed at Michelle not Annika, however, as it is the winless one who has attempted to make a career out of this supposed crossover potential.

Annika should just concentrate on her golf and not be bad mouthing other players.
I don't think Michelle Wie has ever said a negative word about another player despite the things that some of them have said about her.

Wie has shown herself to be a true lady, who doesn't feel the need to run to the media to bad mouth others. Annika could learn from that.

If Annika had a problem with what Michelle Wie did, then why not contact Michelle Wie?
Why run to the media and make derogatory comments. Annika should be ashamed of herself, but from what Chris Baldwin has reported most of the players don't like Annika anyway. That's why only Nicole Castrale was willing to back up Annika's comments.

My guess is, the apology will come in private, and be accepted. I would be surprised if Annika fails to become a confidant of sorts for Wie. She needs a Mark O'Meara-Tiger mentoring program badly.

Dan,

In all civilized societies,
if a minor spat, a differnce of opinion, or a breach of etiquette regarding even an alleged slight occurs, the usual course of action is as follows:

If one of the disputants far exceeds the other in age,experience, and accomplishment, that person receives the apology.

The other disputant, a long way behind the other in age, experience, and accomplishment, invariably defers to his or her superior and offers a sincere apology.

That's the way it is done in polite society regardless of the sex of the disputants.

I have no way of knowing where you live or what culture you embrace; my guess is that you are British or a citizen of one of Britain's former possessions. All of Britain's former colonies, including the USA, have this same set of values.

Tim, this came from urbandictionary.com, even though it is apparently Irish !

1. cop on
13 up, 1 down


Mainly an Irish slang word, meaning to get common sense.

"Would ya stop hit'n your sister Conor and feck'n cop on."
by Kruger606 Ireland May 31, 2005 email it

Ty Webb,
Read some of Chris Baldwins knowledgeable blogs, where he discusses how neither the players nor officials like Annika.
She is known for complaining to officials and berating them for no reason.
She is grumpy and if you were fortunate enough to go to an lpga event and get her autograph you might bare witness to the way she signs a quick brace of autographs with a look on her face that says, why do I have to bother wasting my time signing for these little people.

Dan...why on earth would you pay any attention to what baldwin says. He does on occasion say something halfway intelligent but for the most part, he is just comic relief. Annika was answering a question put to her by the press. She did not say that she wants an apology. Most folks, including myself, believe that she is owed one however.

The whole class/disrespect/apology thing was handled very poorly by all sides. That includes Annika, Michelle, and the media.

At the end of the day it was a private issue that should've stayed private. Annika's nasty comments to the media about it blew it out of proportion and made her and the LPGA look very petty. (Also, if Annika is the voice for the LPGA, why does she see fit to skip out on meeting with the media whenever she has a poor round, like she did after the 2nd round at the US Open?)

Now, I do think Michelle should have made some kind of explanation and come to an understanding with Annika. But, she did not make her now-infamous public comments to Annika's face. She was literally ambushed with Annika's insulting words by a reporter at a press conference who wanted some drama to report. She was thoughtless in her response but she clearly had no idea about how it would be taken out of context by the media, as if she was saying that to Annika's face.

And yeah, shame on the media for blowing up the issue like it did. I could care less about issues like that. In the scheme of things, it's not important, and it's hardly a crime. Male athletes, golfers and in other sports, do far more inappropriate things, all the time.

Back to the blog entry: Tim, you contradict yourself. In the first paragraph you say that she declined, and "says it is not because of her wrist injury." But then in another paragraph you note that she didn't give an explanation. So what is it.

Tim,

In light of her total absence of even marginal play in close to a year, what is amazing is that the HSBC would offer Michelle Wie a sponsor's exemption.

From their posts, it is apparent that neither Dan nor Jay believe that teenagers should respect their elders or people who are icons in their chosen fields.

"My guess is, the apology will come in private, and be accepted. I would be surprised if Annika fails to become a confidant of sorts for Wie. She needs a Mark O'Meara-Tiger mentoring program badly. "

Iagree w/ Ron Mon

Annika should have the courage to speak to Michelle Wie! Wie does not need to respond to media assaults based upon hate and envy. We are 200% behind Michelle Wie!!! Aloha!!!

Annika should have the courage to speak to Michelle Wie! Wie does not need to respond to media assaults based upon hate and envy. We are 200% behind Michelle Wie!!! Aloha!!!

WPetrasek,

That's not much of an attempt at sarcasm or comedy.

Please try to do better.

W Petrasek.... what do you mean, "hate and evny"? Did you actually read Annika's interview or are you just going along with what is being attributed to her??? Sounds like the later to me. Once again, Annika did not ask for an apology. Now, let's get back to MW. Many of her supporters are implying that she shouldn't be held accountable because she is only 17. Well, in that case, the spoiled brat should be grounded for her classless behavior. MW's entire gimmik is that she hits the ball soooo far. Well, she is not the longest hitter on the LPGA. Brittany Lincicome hits it farther and has actually won on tour. Isn't that amazing. Maybe MW should take a more humble route.

If Bubbles isn't old enough to be held accountable for behavior in a professional arena, she is not old enough to be a professional.

Any reasonable, moral person understands that what she did was wrong. You don't withdraw from a tournament you've graciously been invited to, citing injury, and then start pounding balls the NEXT DAY at a different venue.

Smails,
She didn't start pounding balls the next day, it was the day after that, but in any case, of all the withdrawals and there were 9 withdrawals at the Ginn Tribute, it is likely that some of the other players who withdrew started playing again pretty soon, given that most of them played the next event.

In fact it is likely that in the majority of withdrawals from pga and lpga events, the players start practicing very quickly again, because it isn't that often a withdrawal is a long term thing. For the vast majority of withdrawals, they will play the next event.

Of course only MW gets complained about for playing soon after withdrawing though.

Dan,

She withdrew after playing 16 holes and being 14 over par. Her reason was that her wrist was too sore to finish the last two holes.

Some others withdrew because they knew they were out of contention to make the cut, others for personal reason, illness etc,.

As far as I know, no others withdrew with two holes remaining.

Alex,
I don't know about others withdrawing with 2 holes left at the event, but at the same time the men were playing and Zach Johnson withdrew with 2 holes remaining in his round.

As regards Wie herself, you are mistaken when you said she withdrew due to her wrist being too sore to finish the last two holes.
If you listened to her interview, she quit because she knew her wrist was too sore to play the 2nd round and thus there wasn't any point in completing the first round when she wouldn't have played the second round.

Dan...so she is just a quitter... ah, that makes it so much better. Your version of events lends credibility to the theory that she QUIT so she wouldn't card that "88". If that is the case, we have a QUITTER with severe character issues.

JR,
There is absolutely no point in completing a first round with a painful wrist if there is no chance of you playing the 2nd round, no point at all.
If you weren't a complete moron you might understand that.

ah, the name calling...you must be a liberal... it's she is a professional and should act like one. She quit. Plain and simple... all the names you write out won't change that fact.

Dan,

From the tenor of your posts, it seems that you would be an apologist for Michelle Wie no matter what she did.

I'm curious. Do you also defend her withdrawal from the US Open? Was it again excruciating pain in her wrist? Or was it the fact that she was 17 over par in 27 holes?

If every golfer whose chances to make the cut were slim opted to quit whenever he or she chose, there wouldn't be much of a tournament.

Dan,

You're spinning so much that you're making yourself dizzy. If some players resume their golfing activities a day or two after withdrawal, it is most likely because their problem is different. If, for instance, you withdraw because of a fever or food poisoning, it's entirely conceivable that you may be right as rain the next day. If you truly have an injury, however, this isn't the case.

I will tell you something, though, and of this I'm almost positive: Bubbles' wrist pain is psychogenic. It's most likely caused by the tremendous pressure and fear she is feeling.

Next, the fact that others might have -- and the operative word is "might" -- withdrawn for the same reasons carries no weight whatsoever. ANYONE who does so owes some apologies, plain and simple.

Lastly, it's completely ridiculous to lament the greater scrutiny place on Bubbles. Did you also complain about the greater hype she received? You see, Dan, they are two sides of the same coin; they are both EXPOSURE, and you can't expect the benefits of exposure without the liabilities. The fact is that the Bubbles clan fired up the hype machine in a calculated, manipulative way, making a lot of money in the process. And you Wiebots were instrumental in the charade. Thus, to now complain about her exposure is idiotic in the extreme.

You buys yo' ticket and you takes yo' chances.

JR: She quit. Plain and simple
______________________

She quite due to injury, plain and simple.

Alex: I'm curious. Do you also defend her withdrawal from the US Open? Was it again excruciating pain in her wrist? Or was it the fact that she was 17 over par in 27 holes?
________________________________

Yes, she hurt her wrist on hole 17 there, her 8th holes of the 2nd round. That was obvious to those who were there.
- It wasn't a surprise that she aggrevated the wrist injury, given that she was hitting out of the rough on nearly every hole.
- The reason she was hitting out of the rough on nearly every hole was that she came back playing too soon after her injury and was having difficulty controling the ball.
- The reason she came back after injury too soon was because it was a major championship and she didn't want to miss it.
- Although this was a worthy and brave decision it was also a stupid decision.

Alex: If every golfer whose chances to make the cut were slim opted to quit whenever he or she chose, there wouldn't be much of a tournament.
____________________

Michelle doesn't withdraw just because she was not going to make the cut. She proved this numerous times at mens events. She also proved that even finishing with an embarassing score would not cause her to withdraw from events.
However, if a player is injured, then withdrawing is a good decision.

Judge Smails:
You're spinning so much that you're making yourself dizzy. If some players resume their golfing activities a day or two after withdrawal, it is most likely because their problem is different. If, for instance, you withdraw because of a fever or food poisoning, it's entirely conceivable that you may be right as rain the next day. If you truly have an injury, however, this isn't the case.
___________________________

I read on another message board, the example of Mi Hyun Kim who withdrew from an event with a knee injury. That's knee injury, not food poisoning or anything like that Mr Judge.
However Mi Hyun Kim managed not only to play the next week but also to get 2nd place at that next event.

In her case, how severe was the injury if she was able to produce that level of performance?
In Wie's case the severity of the injury had been pretty obvious.

Judge Smails:
Lastly, it's completely ridiculous to lament the greater scrutiny place on Michelle. Did you also complain about the greater hype she received? You see, Dan, they are two sides of the same coin; they are both EXPOSURE, and you can't expect the benefits of exposure without the liabilities.
___________________________

Very true Judge. Wie did get extra credit and has taken extra flak from the media.
Sure there has been times where she has been unfairly treated where they complain about her doing things, that would be considered perfectly fine for other players.

However on the opposite side of that coin, hopefully you won't complain about the hype surrounding her first lpga title, whether that is a major event or normal lpga event, because it will be treated as if she had won the grand slam. The media will really overhype it.
Given that she took extra flak, that overhyping will be well justified and fair.

No, Stanley, your reasoning is flawed. The hype came first, not the criticism. The Bubbles' clan wanted publicity, and they did everything in their power to market Bubbles, often proceeding in a very calculating manner.

In other words, the Wiebots got this train rolling; we're just responding.

Lastly, the hype ISN'T justified because she isn't that good, while the criticism is justified because she is that bad.

As for my comment about withdrawal, Stanley, you both got sloppy and took my comment out of context.

I said that MOST of the time it's not due to an injury, not all the time. I also said that EVERYONE who acts in Bubbles' craven and callow manner deserves reprobation.

Um Dan, Annika is not going around looking for an apology. Tim the blogger has said, and rightly so, that the spoiled little brat Bubbles should apoligize to her. But it is not accurate that Annika is out there searching for one, she has only responded to media questions that have been asked of her...ie. "has MW apoligized to you" Answer, "No". That is hardly searching for an apology. The more important question is why on god's green earth was MW offered a sponsor's exemption in the first place to this event. Given that she hasn't broken par in competition in what is it now 23 rounds? Perhaps her allure is now watching a professional golfer shoot scores the average 10 handicapper can beat, and that is now what the sponsors are banking on.

Dan, how many withdrew who were there on sponsor's exemptions. If you qualify to play in an event you are entitled to withdraw from that event for whatever reason. You start to do it too many times you may get criticized (ie, John Daly). However bottom line is, if you qualify, you have freedom to withdraw. It is entirely different when you take the spot of a more deserving player who will not feign injury to avoid an embarassing score being posted for eternity.

Stanley,

According to your predictions, Miss Wie WILL win an LPGA event this year, no doubt about it. You're not backsliding, are you?

Since she is scheduled to play in the Evian, the Ricoh, and the Canadian, which one will be her first victory?

from stanley:
*****
However on the opposite side of that coin, hopefully you won't complain about the hype surrounding her first lpga title, whether that is a major event or normal lpga event, because it will be treated as if she had won the grand slam. The media will really overhype it.
Given that she took extra flak, that overhyping will be well justified and fair.
*****

If Wie fails to win an LPGA tournament by roughly July 15, 2008 ... no one is going to care.

And if Wie fails to win an LPGA Major by approximately Aug. 20, 2008
... no one will care.

If you're curious why those dates, the respective correct answers are Paula Creamer and Morgan Pressel.

for better or worse, it's tick tock, tick tock

-George

Smudge:
Dan, how many withdrew who were there on sponsor's exemptions. If you qualify to play in an event you are entitled to withdraw from that event for whatever reason. You start to do it too many times you may get criticized (ie, John Daly). However bottom line is, if you qualify, you have freedom to withdraw.
__________________________-

Smudge,
She qualified for the US Womens Open.
So from what you said, you believe that since she qualified she was fine in withdrawing for any reason.

Alex,
The predictions of Michelle winning in 2007 were on the assumption that she had a fair chance.

I would also have expected Phil to win a major in 2007. However given his injury, that isn't necessarily going to happen.

Whether she wins in late 2007 or early 2008 doesn't particularly matter. I am still confident she will break Paula Creamer's record.

Stanley,

You'll be as dizzy as Dan if you keep up that amount of spinning.

How in hell did Phil enter the picture? Stay on topic, my man!

george,

For several months, the Wie Warriors always had the Rolex rankings to fall back on.

Michelle Wie was always mysteriously in the top fifteen, and always ahead of Paula and Morgan.

But now that Paula and Morgan are six aand seven and Miss Wie is 36th, they have stopped looking to Rolex to solidify their position.

What have you Wie-wee's got against Rolex?

Alex,

You see, the rankings just aren't fair. They don't consider truly relevant factors such as the media attention a player receives, how many times she cradles her wrist towards the end of a bad round, how fine the line separating her 82s from 68s is, her status as an oppressed woman or minority, the loftiness of her ambitions, her ability to flap her lips, her hubris, or the sparkly nature of her timepieces. Most egregiously, if you start missing cuts and finishing lower in events, your ranking drops!

Oh, the injustice of it all.

Dan said
"I don't think Michelle Wie has ever said a negative word about another player despite the things that some of them have said about her."



Well Dan she never seems to mention any players in particular but she has said things like the men are truly afraid to play against her on the PGA Tour and she has said she would get bored playing against just women and she wanted to play against the best players in the world who were the men. She has said a lot of smartass things things to rile the golf world up.

Judge Smails,

You made a slight erroe in your post.

The effervescent one hasn't yet missed a cut in an LPGA event.

She was on the verge of an MC at Bulle Rock, when the last player in the field bogeyed her final two holes and let about twenty additional players into the weekend.

At the Ginn Tribute and the Open, she took the WD route to avoid missed cuts. And that's exactly what she did despite all the spinning by the Wie-wee's.

Just thought I'd insert that trivial correction before the Wiebots jump all over it.

Of course, Wie's MC's in men's events are legendary.

Stanley,

I've got to give you credit. You are a true believer. For lo these many months, you have confidently predicted that MW would definitely win an LPGA tournament in 2007. No if's and's or but's.

Now, it's 2007 or 2008, it makes no difference.

I'll tell you what, Big Stan. If you are really so confident that MW will win by early 2008 at the latest, you should make a sizable wager on that outcome. If her previous play this year is any indication, she should be about 50 to 1 to win any event she will enter on the LPGA tour.
Those were her odds as quoted by Pinnacle for the US Open.

Tell me, Stanley, what has so buoyed your confidence in her golf game? Is it her unerring ability to plant those 300+ yard drives straight down the middle?

Or maybe it's her sterling iron play that has been rescuing her from the deep rough for all those exciting par saves?

Or is it her amazing short game that has put her on the cusp of victory in so many tournaments?

Perhaps it is a combination of all of these which will put her in the record books ahead of those pretenders Paula and Morgan.

But I'm sure if 2008 isn't her year, we'll always have 2009 to fall back on. To the Wiebots, hope truly does spring eternal.

Alex:What have you Wie-wee's got against Rolex?
_______________________

Alex,
The Rolex Rankings will rank a player fairly if she has played a minimum of 35 events in the previous 2 year period. If she has played less, for example if she played 15 events, it would rank her for those 15 events, along with pretending that she played a further 20 events and got no ranking points in any of them.

Therefore the rankings cannot be truly fair to any player who has played less than 35 events.

As regards Wie's ranking and how it was higher, even with the 35 divisor she was up around number 7, that was because she had put in 6 top 5s in a row and those were recent events, which gave them more weight in the rankings.

As those results get older in the rankings, they lose some of their weighted ranking and become less valuable.
Given that she came back from injury and posted some bad results while hampered by injury that didn't help the ranking either.

But don't worry old boy, her ranking will go back up again.

Alex:At the Ginn Tribute and the Open, she took the WD route to avoid missed cuts.
____________________

That's not true Alex.
As you said herself, she was very lucky at the lpga championship to make the cut, she had to rely on another player to completely mess up. Sort of reminds you how Morgan got very lucky at the Kraft Nabisco when another player messed up.

But Alex, in doing what she did at the lpga championship, she proved that she wasn't afraid to miss the cut. She was odds on to miss that cut, but for some very good luck. That proves without any doubt that she wasn't afraid to miss the cut and thus her other two withdrawals had nothing to do with missing the cut. They were due to the well publicised wrist injury. No doubt the withdrawals were due to coming back too early, but it is very difficult for a girl who loves the game so much to stay away from events like the US Freaking Open.

Alex: For lo these many months, you have confidently predicted that MW would definitely win an LPGA tournament in 2007. No if's and's or but's.
Now, it's 2007 or 2008, it makes no difference.
_______________________

Alex, if someone were to predict Vijay would win at least one major in 2008, and then in February Vijay fractured his wrist, thus missing the Masters, and he just came back in right before the 2nd and 3rd majors, it would not be fair to hold the person to the prediction.

Vijay would have missed the first major, been severely hampered for the 2nd and 3rd and who knows how he would have been recovered for the fourth. So Alex, things changed and less is expected in these examples.

However, I expect Michelle to do very well in 2008 because she is a great player.

Stanley,

Way to go, Stan baby! Keep on spinning!

The way you're going, you might get into a carnival as a whirling dervish.

Maybe you've forgotten, but Miss Wie will be a full-time first-year student at a prestigious university in the time frame that you have set.

Do you think that might have any effect on her golf game, which incidentally is already amiss?

I realize that you expect her to drop out of college, but so soon?

Then again, she may do just that.
She has shown that she isn't afraid to drop out of anything, including a prestigious tournament to which she was graciously invited by a great champion AND the US Open.

Tell me, Stanley, who do you like? The Titanic or the iceberg?

Alex,
You don't know everything you think about her Stanford education plans. You will be in for a little surprise!

As regards her dropping out, she has shown herself to be a courageous competitor who entered tournaments when she was only just back playing and played through some pain to get to the point that she did in those tournaments. Luckily she had the good sense to withdraw when she did in those events.

Hopefully her rehabbing has gone well and she will put in a good performance at the Evian Masters.

Ford Where are you? I have been checking the blogs for a post from you but no luck. Contact me so I can settle our bet.

Stanley,

I'll admit that I don't know a thing about Bubbles' educational plan. But I assume that since you are in the "golf business", you do,

So let me guess. How's this; Bubbles won't have to attend class since she has received a sponsor's exemption and has already graduated.

Or Bubbles will receive a full quarter os scholastic credit for every event in which she doesn't WD.

Stanley,

I really don't mind your spinning the way you do.
At times it is actually entertaing.

But you are overdoing it.

When you equate Bubbles' quitting tournaments with being courageous, that is over the top. She did temper her raw bravery a little by dropping out, though. And playing through excruciating pain to accomplish those ends. Wow! Just wow!

Although her display of intestinal fortitude and courage may not quite merit the Medal of Honor, she should at the very least be in line for a DSC and a Purple Heart with a pair of oakleaf clusters

The same people over and over. First, I
side with those brave enough to criticize
Annika for her behavior. What does Annika
think is the desired outcome here? Get
Michelle Wie out of golf for a year because
she shot 90? Is that good for the women's
game, Annika? What is everyone thinking?
Michelle Wie just did what ANYONE would
have done in her situation. Let's see,
what's the choice here: keep going and
end up not playing competitively at all
for a year, or quit with the injury?
Second, the bullies, oops, bloggers, that
call Michelle Wie various stupid names
are pathetic people --- there has been
a lynch mob mentality about Michelle Wie
for over a year --- and this was a 16 year
old girl. I blame these people, the
third-tier media, and the Old Girls for
hounding a teenage girl into the state
she is now in. I mean, folks: how did she
get here? Everyone sees she has lost her
confidence, but no one wants to talk
about how come. So here is to the
Michael Bambergers, Steve Duemigs, Chris
Baldwins, etc --- you did it: you crushed
a 16 year old girl. Good job! Third, for god's sake, someone fire David Leadbetter. Aren't
coaches held responsible for the performance
of those they coach? He has taken a Mona
Lisa swing and turned it into The Scream.
This is not Michelle Wie's fault. But let's
back off and give her at least a chance
to right herself --- though I suspect it
is already too late.

Had_it,

It is too late--for you to be out on furlough from the home,

Now get back on the bus, and for goodness sake, don't forget your medication.

Had_It,

Bubbles' loss of confidence has nothing to do with her critics. As to this, she has unabashedly said that she doesn't care what people think and, I believe, that criticism only spurs her on.

Regardless, her loss of confidence is explained by some ancient wisdom:

"He who exalts himself will be humbled."

Bubbles ratcheted up the expectations to a point unattainable by any female. As a result, she felt pressure to do the impossible and crumbled. It's not hard to understand at all.

Michelle did not lose confidence due to critisism.
She lost some confidence when she broke her wrist and tried to return too early with a dodgy wrist that she didn't know whether the next swing would be okay or would bring a sharp jolt of pain.
It's difficult for any player to play well through that.

Michelle Wie clear from injury and with a little time to practice injury free will have no problems.
On the lpga tour, she is a class player.
Bashers like Alex and Judge Smails should have enjoyed early 2007. You will look back on it with fondness and cherish it, but you won't be looking back on 2008 in a similar way.

Ooh, Stan the man is waxing confident. Stan baby, Bubbles is toast for the foreseeable future, and I strongly suspect that this includes 2008. it's entirely possible that she saw her peak at age 14.

Judge Smails,

Stanley has become Wiebot numero uno by default. Jim C, Norman, and the others are either laying low or have seen the light.

I think Stanley is just trying to be cute. He may not be a genius, but he is literate.

Nobody that knows how to tie his shoes could possibly be serious in such views.

He realizes all too well that if Bubbles actually attends classes at Stanford, she simply won't have the time to get in all that intense practice.

And like you, I'm virtually certain that Bubbles will never equal her golf game of a year ago, which nevertheless still did not yield a tournament victory.

So Stanley, consider yourself outed.

Judge Smails: it's entirely possible that she saw her peak at age 14.
_________________

Then how did she play far better at 16 then 14?
At 14 she had 1 top 5.
At 15 she had 4 top 5s.
At 16 she had 6 top 5s.

So are you sticking to the peaking at 14 comment?

Stanley,

I was thinking of her flirtation with the cut line at the Sony. But I'll cede that point; if you want to say that her best golf was at 16, fine. My point is that her best golf may be behind her. As I and others have previously said, the history of sport is replete with female athletes who peaked in their teen years and then faded. This is not to say that Bubbles will never resurrect her game in a measure; after all, she has had trouble breaking 80 of late, and there is such thing as deviation toward the mean. However, the fact remains that her confidence has been badly shaken.

The Judge has hit the nail on the head. Nichelle Wie's best is probably behind her. I know it is hard for her diehard fans to accept, but I predicted last December that this night happen to her.

I blame it on two things. One she and her parents and agents put way too much on her plate. Too much traveling, too many photo shoots, too many publicity appearances, just too much pressure for any teen age girl. Two, trying to compete against men players who are the best in the world. This last mistake was probably the worst.

No individual or team learns anything good by getting their brains beat out. That is why college football teams don't even scrimmage against NFL teams. They would be out classed, demoralized and maybe seriously injured. That is what happened to her against the PGA players and the European pros.

One year ago at the Evian masters, Michelle Wie had her best pro showing. She finished tied for second only one shot from first behind Karrie Webb. She led the pack in driving distance and was right up there in the rest of the stats.

I remember saying at the time that this girl is showing everyone that she has what it takes. If only her parents and agents would ease off and let her develope naturally she might be the best yet. For sure keep her away from the PGA. Instead they put her back into the lion's den and now we see the results.

On Friday I'm going to be 77 so I know what I;m talking about. I've seen scores of young girls, as Judge says, that have burned out during their teen years. Those fans who see nothing wrong with the way Wie was handled should ask themselves if they would put their own daughter into such a snakepit.

I'd like to see her put the whole thing on hold until she finishes one year of college.

Maybe she will be able to come back then. If not, it;s all over for her.

I must admit that reading these posts has been fascinating. One of the wie-supporters believes that the WD with 2 holes remaining had nothing to do with the approaching 88, while another believes that "ANYONE" in the same situation would have done likewise. Let's remove the rose colored glasses! Initially, I was a big fan of Bubbles. And I remained a fan through some of her disturbing breaches of etiquette on the gold course. But the withdrawal to prevent the possible 88, her practicing 36 hours later, and her subsequent comments ruined it for me. Yes Virginia, Bubbles is a brat. And it's hard to feel sorry for a $20 million endorsement baby who has yet to win a tournament. One article put in perfectly - Phil WD with a wrist injury, saw 2 doctors, had an MRI and quit playing for awhile ... Bubbles (I LOVE that name by the way!) WD because of a "wrist injury" and was practicing 36 hours later. And of course, practicing where LPGA pros were not allowed to practice added insult to injury (no pun intended!)

Michael,

I am not much of a fan of Bubbles, nor have I ever been.

But since we are now of the same opinion, maybe you can answer a few of my questions.

1)What in hell has happened to Bubbles' golf game? And

2)Why did it happen so rapidly?.

The venerable John Z seems to have it about right. Bubbles' free fall coincides with her drubbings at the Lumber, Omega, Casio, and the Sony.

All of these predate her "injury."

One year ago she was at the top of her game. I did a small amount of research and Bubbles' Evian was indeed her best showing. Now she has freefallen into a slump to end all slumps.

I'm admittedly a Wie skeptic, but I am at a loss to explain why she has dropped like a stone.

Alex,
Michelle's game had dropped before the injury but not that much.

In her so called two disasterous lpga events, the British Open and the Samsung, her highest score was 75. Even in mens events her highest score was +9 and that was shot at a 7,500 yard wet course with no run on the ball.
So that's a long way from the kinds of 80+ scores that she shot early after her injury on much shorter lpga courses.
So don't try to pretend that it was just more of the same after the injury. It was not, it was a whole lot worse, and hopefully you enjoyed it while it lasted. I confidently predict that she is through the worst of it.
I expect her to play fine at the Evian Masters. I expect her to play 4 rounds there.

"I confidently predict that she is through the worst of it.
I expect her to play fine at the Evian Masters. I expect her to play 4 rounds there."

You expect her to play fine??? What does that even mean? Will she break 80, will she finish the tournament? Will she break par for the first time in nearly a calender year?

At the tender age of 13 she was widely regarded as the future of golf, "the next Tiger Woods". It was not a question of "if" she would win on the LPGA, but how soon she would dethrone Annika as the greatest female golfer of all-time. The media and her growing legions of fans were already charting her course to the PGA tour, where she would not only make cuts, but someday actually win. In an interview with 60 minutes Steve Kroft all but had her fitted for a green jacket. Michelle for her part only added to the hype with talk about what she would do when she tired of dominating the LPGA tour, she spoke without a trace of hubris about beating "insecure" men, playing in the Ryder Cup, and playing in the Masters. A string of top-5 finishes in LPGA majors were enough to keep the fire burning, her fans would cry that the victories would come soon enough, after all "she is only(insert age here)". Now as we approach year 5 of Michelle Wie's time in the golf spotlight, perhaps it's time to re-evaluate, just as Stanley so clearly has.

From world golf dominance to simply playing through the weekend on the LPGA, my how the mighty have fallen.

I will agree with you on one point. I do believe she has a legitimate injury and that has hampered her game as of late, but surely you must concede, as Alex mentioned that her troubles pre-date any injury.