Before all the hounds begin to yelp and bark I have to hand it to the folks marketing Michelle Wie. They have simply bypassed any of the events that might impede the future marketing $$$ of Michelle.
To wit ...
You won't see Michelle in the field of this year's US Women's Amateur.
Why?
Very simple.
Michelle would be the big time favorite and anything less than victory might knock a few dollars off her overall value when she ultimately turns pro. Chris Baldwin said this on Worldgolf.com and frankly I agree with his premise.
I have to wonder if the Wie camp is deliberately avoiding such events because there's everything to lose and little to win -- but then again winning when you are supposed to is the ultimate in pressure type situations. Nothing like having Michelle compete in the professional events because even if she flops badly (witness the 4th round in the Women's Open) she still gains simply because of the wherewithal to use the "look how young she is" excuse.
I only wish Wie would take to heart what Tiger said originally. Learning to win among players within her own classification would only build her overall value and strength as a player in the long run.
I wonder what Morgan Pressel and Jane Park are thinking that Michelle has opted not to contest them in such a major amateur event like the Women's Amateur.
Michelle Wie has considerable talent -- the bigger question for me -- does she have the guts / capacity to win when she is the center stage item. Thus far -- I have not seen it but why should competition get in the way of the ultimate purpose -- the marketing of a young woman for maximum $$$.
Matt, looking entirely from the outside -- the Wieīs have not yet chosen to consult with me -- I see their game plan entirely differently. I think they want to make Michelle into the best golfer they can. Every choice they make is aimed at that one goal.
Take the U.S. Amateur. Scheduling conflict meant she realistically had to choose between that and the British Open. So which better developes her game? To me itīs no contest. The Open. She plays against the best women golfers in the world, in one of the four most important championships, on a stage watched by tens of millions. She has a very good chance of winning this tournament, and in fact tied for third.
Wie whipped top adult amateurs when she was 13. (She beat a two-time collegiate all-American, who later won the U.S. Amateur, in the finals of the publinx.) Her LPGA results this year show to me she is one of the two or three best women players in the world. On menīs length courses, she is number one: even Annika did not come close to matching her results. How then does it help her game to play against inferior competition, on lesser courses, in a less prestigious venue?
Tiger never faced the choices Wie does. When he was a teenager he clobbered the other amateurs, but flopped against the pros. He didnīt come close to winning majors: he missed the cut in every tournament he played for years, till he was 19. Tiger played to his level, and his forays into PGA events showed he was out of his class there.
Suppose that was not the case though. Suppose at 15 Tiger was racking up 2nd place finishes in menīs majors...posting the 2nd-best scoring average on tour (despite playing only the toughest courses)...leading the U.S. Open after 54 holes...having the highest percentage of under-par rounds of any PGA player...finishing in the top ten in earnings, though he only played seven events? If that had been the case, IMO he would have wasted his time playing the amateur events.
Winning. That is the biggest refrain against Wie. If she were 24, had played full-time on tour for years, and had no Wīs, there might be a point. (Though even then some players mature later. Hogan and Vijay are two prominent examples.) But Wie is 15, and only played seven LPGA events this year! Her results are astonishingly good. Statistically, her play ranks second only behind Annika. Iīll offer you a friendly wager that Wie soon sets the new record for youngest winner in LPGA history.
Marketing. If Wie keeps getting better, she will easily make nine figures and possibly more from golf. Especially if she shows she can play on the PGA tour. That is a complete unknown now. But for the first time ever, itīs a possibility. A woman may be able to play the PGA. The PGA pros know it: during the menīs British Open, Montie said as soon as he finished his round he raced to find out how Wie did at the Publinx. She did great, showing she could play with the best men amateurs.
IMO the Wies are building her game brilliantly. She plays her peers -- the best LPGA players. She plays a little against PGA players, and shows she is not far behind there either. Every year her game and results get better. I predict the wins will soon follow. If her game improves the way it does for most 15 year olds, she is also real likely to win on the PGA tour.