Wie moves into second place in LPGA qualifying

[Kilroy]

RANCHO MIRAGE, Calif. - Michelle Wie shot a bogey-free 7-under 65 on Wednesday in the second round of an LPGA Tour sectional qualifying tournament, putting her in second place in a field of 164.

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[Hacker]

RANCHO MIRAGE, Calif. - Michelle Wie shot a bogey-free 7-under 65 on Wednesday in the second round of an LPGA Tour sectional qualifying tournament, putting her in second place in a field of 164.

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I wonder who's idea it was to NOT speak with the media? Michelle's or her parents??

[justsomeguy]

I wonder who's idea it was to NOT speak with the media? Michelle's or her parents??

I don't know, but it seems to be working for her...

... but I'm not sure if this option exists when you're playing in tour events.

[Hacker]

I don't know, but it seems to be working for her...

... but I'm not sure if this option exists when you're playing in tour events.

What if you can't speak English??

[Golfbum]

It's hard to believe she is actually trying to qualify for the LPGA instead of mooching free rides all the time.
Does Daddy enter her into the PGA Qualifier this year?

[justsomeguy]

What if you can't speak English??

Yeah sure, let's go down that road again!

Actually, I think the LPGA might have some sort of policy about "making yourself available to the media".

[leftylucas]

Let's get something straight, the exemptions she gets are 100% justified from those sponsors who love the publicity and the notariaty of Ms Wie. The fact that she realises that she needs to actually earn her card is a positive step. I agree she rode the exemption train to the station and then some but why not, she is still qualified to be on the LPGA and if she can use a special shampoo to get rid of the parents in her hair she will likely challenge Ochoa once she is out of college and on the tour full time.

[justsomeguy]

Not picking on anyone in particular and I'm not sure I really want to open this can of worms, but I've never really understood the animosity many people seem to have towards Michelle Wie's parents.

On various golf forums it ranges from mild disapproval all the way up to outright demonization - and it just doesn't seem right to me. Her parents have undoubtedly ticked off a few people in the pro golf world - and particularly in the golf media - but so what?

Any parent of a teenager knows that it can be a challenging time and you're going to make mistakes. When it comes to a teenage daughter, you first instinct is to be over-protective so I can understand that. People trot out the "overbearing, hard-driving taskmaster father" stereotype, but there's been no evidence of that at all. Some people think they can do better job - and maybe they can - but that's not their responsibility so maybe they need to mind their own business.

TW has been quoted as saying "Golf is what I do - its not who I am". I think some people - especially those in the media - need to look at MW with that statement in mind, and look at her as a person and not just a commodity. I've never met her of course, but by all accounts she is polite, smart and well-adjusted - as well as being a talented golfer. She seems a little shy and awkward in public sometimes, but most teenage girls are. She stayed in school and is now going to Stanford (even though she clearly didn't need to), so I think that says something about her values and priorities. Financially she is set for life if she wants to be. So maybe - just maybe - her parents haven't done such a bad job after all.

Only Michelle can really judge whether her parents are a help or a hindrance, and she ain't talking. I'm sure her parents have made some mistakes but I'm not so sure anyone here would have done better - in fact I'm not so sure we can judge what "better" is. But I'm virtually certain that there are a few people in the "golf world" who need to cut them some slack.

[jvincent]

The issue that most people have had with MW parents is that from what people have been able to see they were the one's that were controlling her career, i.e. when and where she plays, caddies, teachers, etc.

The consensus was that the approach she was following was wrong and that was directly attributable to her parents.

Her parents have also caused issues on the course in the past when her father was caddying and when they were in practice areas which are normally off limits.

[McG]

I wonder who's idea it was to NOT speak with the media? Michelle's or her parents??

It was probably Vijay's idea.

[justsomeguy]

The issue that most people have had with MW parents is that from what people have been able to see they were the one's that were controlling her career, i.e. when and where she plays, caddies, teachers, etc.

The consensus was that the approach she was following was wrong and that was directly attributable to her parents.

Her parents have also caused issues on the course in the past when her father was caddying and when they were in practice areas which are normally off limits.

Yeah, I remember all that stuff. Sounded to me like a lot of sour grapes from people who all wanted a piece of "the next phenom" and didn't get it.

Personally, I think when you're the parent of a 15-year-old, then looking out for her future is not something you should just contract-out to a bunch of people who all have their own agendas. I know I would be very cautious if she were my daughter, and I suspect most people would be too if they actually thought about it that way.

Besides, who's to say it was not Michelle's strong preference to have her parent's look after her interests rather than the other way around? We don't know how it really happened - frankly its a private, family matter that we don't have a right to know. But I do know that not all the stories about kids that basically "leave home" at 15 to pursue a career in sports have a happy ending. There's more than one way to get to the same place.

[lms]

So far so good - if you want her to make it. Tied for 4th, top 30 make it to next event in December.

http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5j...CZuUwD93A3DA80