Michelle Wie, a Korean-American schoolgirl whose power has stunned golf rivals twice her age, turned professional in Hawaii on Wednesday, six days shy of her 16th birthday.
”From the first time I grabbed a golf club, I knew I would do it for the rest of my life and I loved it,” Wie said. ”Twelve years later, I’m turning pro and I’m so excited.”
Wie will make her pro debut next week at the LPGA Samsung World Championship from October 13 to 16 at Palm Desert, California, and will play against men at the Casio World Open on the Japan PGA Tour next month in Kochi, Japan.
”I’m really excited for next week,” Wie said. ”I’ve been practising really hard so hopefully I can play really well. I’m going to practise harder than ever to try and become the best golfer in the world.”
Despite long-driving ability to compete against male pros, Wie has failed to make the cut in five men’s events. But she finished second to Sweden’s Annika Sorenstam at the 2005 LPGA Championship and was third at the United States Women’s Open.
Such success would have helped put Wie among the LPGA’s top 15 money winners in 2005, had she been professional. It spurred Wie’s decision to join the pros.
”I’ve been thinking about it for a really long time, when is the right time,” she said. ”The past couple of months I felt ready. I felt mature. I felt comfortable enough out there.”
Critics point out that Wie has not yet won a tournament, unlike some other teen women on the LPGA circuit. But Wie’s desire to test the best men and her solid play against the women has captured the global imagination.
”I realise everyone is going to have higher expectations,” Wie said. ”It’s going to be super exciting. Everything is at a higher stake. It’s going to be so much fun. I’m really looking forward to it.”
Deals with Nike and Sony will bring Wie nearly $10-million, making her the wealthiest woman in golf and trailing only tennis stars Maria Sharapova of Russia and Serena Williams, a fellow American, in endorsement income.
”I’m so grateful for all the money they gave me,” Wie said, seated on a stage flanked by executives from her new corporate benefactors.
Wie has donated $500 000 of her new wealth to relief efforts for those devastated by Hurricane Katrina.
”I’m so grateful for the opportunity to be in a position to help people,” Wie said. ”So many people over the last two months have lost so much. It has been really heart-wrenching.
”As an American citizen, I thought it was my duty to donate $500 000 to Hurricane Katrina [relief]. Every single cent will go to those people.”
Wie made her morning announcement — becoming the most eagerly awaited pro golf newcomer since Tiger Woods made his jump from the amateur ranks in 1996 — in her hometown before catching a ride to high school art and Japanese classes.
”I’m just a little more nervous than usual at the conferences and tournaments,” Wie said. ”Personally, I don’t really feel any change turning from an amateur to a pro. It’s just a change in status, really. I think it’s going to be exciting.”
The junior is old enough to drive a golf ball for big money, but not yet old enough to drive a car.
”My first priority is school,” Wie said. ”I know I’m going to graduate high school.”
While Woods attended Stanford and played collegiate golf before turning pro, Wie will wedge her classes around her golf schedule, even if it delays her graduation plans.
”Definitely I’m going to college and going to graduate,” Wie said. ”Sure I will play a lot of tournaments. I’ll downsize my classes. I probably won’t graduate in four years. I will try to graduate no matter how long it takes.”
Wie, whose parents came from South Korea to Hawaii in the 1980s, is learning Japanese and Chinese languages and is expected to be a huge star in Asia as well as the US.
Previous appearances by Wie at men’s events have raised attendance and television ratings as the prodigy goes for her ultimate goal of being the first woman to play at the Masters, the first major men’s tournament of every year.
Wie must wait another two years to meet the LPGA minimum age requirement, but she has not missed an LPGA cut in any event she has played over the past two years and is likely to play eight LPGA events next year on sponsor exemptions.
Wie signed a representation deal with the William Morris Agency, known for Hollywood connections rather than sporting ones in which other firms specialise.
”It all comes down to me being an only child. I’m used to exclusivity,” Wie said. ”It just came down to that, really.” — Sapa-AFP