Wie will play in LPGA's Kraft Nabisco tourney
By Ann Miller
Advertiser Staff Writer
Michelle Wie was one of six amateurs who officially accepted a Kraft Nabisco Championship invitation Tuesday, according to Tournament Director Terry Wilcox. The Punahou sophomore played in the LPGA's first major the past two years, finishing ninth and fourth.
This year's tournament will be March 24 to 27, again at Mission Hills Country Club, in Rancho Mirage, Calif.
The other American amateurs who will play are U.S. Women's Amateur champion Jane Park, a high school senior from California; Brittany Lang, a Duke sophomore who was the 2004 Freshman of the Year; and Florida high school champion Morgan Pressel.
Wie, Park and Lang played on the winning U.S. Curtis Cup team last summer.
Paraguay's Julieta Granada, the U.S. Girls' Junior Champion, and Karin Sjodin of Sweden, an Oklahoma State junior ranked No. 1 in the NCAA, also accepted invitations.
Wie tees off at 8:59 a.m. today in the first round of the Sony Open in Hawai'i. She starts on the 10th tee at Waialae Country Club. Wie goes off last in tomorrow's second round, at 1:24 p.m., off No. 1.
Her partner in the Pro-Am yesterday was the same player she practiced with Tuesday — two-time defending Sony champion Ernie Els.
Els and former Hawaiian Open champion Jim Furyk believe Waialae is a good fit for the 15-year-old, who is trying to become the first woman in 60 years — and youngest ever — to make a PGA Tour cut.
"She's probably not used to playing 7,500-yard golf courses with forced carries of over 200 yards and hitting 3-irons to firm greens like we'll see sometimes this year," Furyk said. "I think playing a golf course of this length (7,068 yards) ... it's not a real long golf course and it's probably not fazing her at all because she hits the ball pretty far. I think it's a good suit."
Both believe the pressure won't faze Wie either — even after the excitement she caused last year when she missed the cut by a stroke. Furyk called her "well, well, well beyond her years." Els characterized Wie's maturity, among other things as "amazing."
"I said to her today, I played my first professional event when I was 16 (South African Open) and missed the cut by one shot," Els recalled. "But definitely my swing wasn't as sound as hers technically speaking. I don't think I was as strong with my mind as she is. It's amazing what she's doing, a 15-year-old girl playing in a PGA Tour event is just amazing. She's doing a hell of a job and she believes she can play with us, which is great."
NOTES
Miracle worker: Michelle Wie, honorary chair of the Kapi'olani Children's Miracle Network, will participate in the Miracle Birdie Club fund-raiser during the Sony Open for the non-profit organization's ongoing mission to benefit children's programs and services in Hawai'i. Participants are invited to pledge a dollar amount for each birdie made by Wie this week. Donations are 100 percent tax-deductible and 100 percent of all funds raised in Hawai'i will stay in Hawai'i. For more details, visit Web site www.miraclebirdieclub.com
Home makeover: When Waialae Country Club refurbished its lockers a year ago, club member Frank Kelly took advantage of the situation to gain a unique conversation piece for his Honolulu home. Ernie Els has used Kelly's locker for the duration of both tournament wins. Els signed the locker for Kelly in appreciation and when Waialae replaced the old metal lockers with wooden ones, Kelly made sure to get the old one. "It made an interesting addition to our home, I'll say that," Kelly said.
Big bounce: ESPN announced that its coverage of last week's Mercedes Championships was up more than 50 percent from last year. It was viewed in an average of 1,372,000 households, compared to 894,000 last year. Excluding majors, Sunday's final round rating of 2.2 was the network's highest-rated golf telecast since the final round of the 2000 Bell Canadian Open (3.5).
Kicking in: A U.S. Golf Tsunami Relief Fund has been started by the PGA Tour, LPGA, PGA of America, U.S. Golf Association and Augusta National. The fund will work with the office of former President George Bush. It hopes to generate $2 million. Tax-deductible contributions can be sent to: U.S. Golf Tsunami Relief Fund, PO Box 2904, Ponte Vedra Beach, Fla., 32004-2904.
Air time: "Hawai'i, Golf Adventures in Paradise," a special one-hour broadcast, will air at 5:30 p.m. Saturday in nearly 70 million households nationwide, as well as Canada, Asia, United Kingdom, and Scandinavia, according to the Hawai'i Visitors & Convention Bureau. The program is equal parts golf and travel with 100 percent of the emphasis on Hawai'i and its appeal to vacationers, the HVCB said. Mark Rolfing, a NBC Sports golf analyst and TV host of Golf Hawai'i, will host the program.
Seniors next: The Champions Tour opens its 25th season next week on the Big Island with the MasterCard Championship at Hualalai. The first full-field tournament is the Turtle Bay Championship, Jan. 28 to 30 at the Palmer Course on the North Shore. The unofficial Wendy's Champions Skins Game, with Arnold Palmer, Jack Nicklaus, Craig Stadler and Tom Watson, will be Feb. 5 and 6 at Wailea's Gold Course.
Skins tickets: Spectators can buy tickets for the Wendy's Champions Skins Game at Wailea pro shops, Queen Ka'ahumanu Center, Ka'anapali Golf Club, Nevada Bob's in Kihei, Maui Golf Shop and most Wailea hotels. Admission is $10 for the Feb. 4 Pro-Am and $25 for the 18-hole competition Feb. 5. Children 12 and younger are free with a ticket-bearing adult. Event parking will be at the grass lot off Wailea Ike Drive. The $3 per vehicle charge benefits Maui County Boy Scouts and Maui Junior Golf. Free shuttle transportation will be available to the course.
Lots of aloha: Ernie Els has now won $4,079,997 in Hawai'i. That would place him 141st on the tour's career money list. Els has earned $2,062,000 at the Sony Open, where he has finished in the top five all four years, winning the last two. He has won $2,017,997 at the Mercedes Championships.
Stay low: Corey Pavin is the last player to win at Waialae Country Club after shooting an over-par round. In 1987, Pavin opened with a 65, then shot 75 before going 66-64 on the weekend. He beat Craig Stadler in a playoff.
Reach Ann Miller at amiller@honoluluadvertiser.com or 525-8043.
