Disastrous day for Wie: 82 drops her into 23rd
By Pat Rooney
Special to The Advertiser
CHERRY HILLS VILLAGE, Colo. — Michelle Wie is too poised and forthright to ever blame any shortcomings on youth and inexperience.
Laura Rauch • Associated Press
Yet there is no denying those factors finally caught up with Wie during the final round of the U.S. Women's Open yesterday at the Cherry Hills Country Club in suburban Denver.
"Difficult would be too easy a word. It was really hard out there for me today, " Michelle Wie said.
Wie, who entered yesterday in a three-way tie atop the leader board, suffered through a nightmarish fourth round, finishing with an 11-over 82. The 15-year-old from Honolulu completed the tournament with a 12-over 296, dropping from first into an eight-way tie for 23rd, meaning she failed to earn an exemption — given to the top 20 finishers — for next year's Open.
"Difficult would be too easy a word. It was really hard out there for me today," Wie said. "I haven't played this bad in a long time, so I definitely learned a lot of things from today.
"One of the things is that I definitely have to get a GPS for my ball, because it was lost out there today. I mean, put a magnet in the ball or something, because that thing was not going towards the hole."
South Korean Birdie Kim won the tournament by firing a final-round 72 to finish at 3-over 287. Kim made a stunning chip shot from the bunker on No. 18 to finish two shots ahead of amateurs Brittany Lang and Morgan Pressel.
Wie said she spoke with Kim during the round, in Korean, and after her own hopes were dashed.
"I rooted for her all day," Wie said. "At the 17th hole, we made a plan that we would make two birdies on the last two holes and she made birdie on the last hole, so I'm really proud of her."
Wie was vying to become only the second amateur to win the U.S. Women's Open, following in the footsteps of 1967 winner Catherine LaCoste, but those plans were derailed almost as soon as Wie teed off in the next-to-last group.
Wie suffered a double bogey on No. 1, her first double bogey of the tournament and the first time she had not saved par on the hole. Wie carded four more bogeys on the front nine, including another double on No. 9, and suffered further frustration when a short putt for birdie on No. 7 rimmed around the cup.
"I knew a couple over was going to win," Wie said. "Even though I made the double on the first hole, I knew if I just got back on track a little bit (I could win). It didn't work out. After (No. 7) all my putts didn't go in, basically."
Wie bogeyed the 10th and then carded her first birdie of the day on the 11th.
Laura Rauch • Associated Press
"I felt if I died right there, I'd die happy," Wie said of her birdie on the 11th. "But I had to play the next couple of holes and it went downhill from there."
Michelle Wie struggled yesterday, but is upbeat heading into the PGA's John Deere Classic. "I learned a lot from this experience and I am still pretty confident about next week," she said.
Wie added her third double bogey of the round on No. 13 and finished the day with 10 bogeys, the same amount she accumulated in the first three rounds combined. Wie carded only two birdies after notching nine in the first three rounds.
"She just got off to a bad start and couldn't get it turned around," said Wie's caddie, Jimmy Johnson. "It just caught up with her."
Wie has received a sponsor's exemption to play in the men's John Deere Classic next week. There she hopes to get back on track and earn a berth in the British Open.
"That is definitely on my mind," Wie said. "If I played bad here, then hopefully I will play good there. I am going to practice a lot harder as well. I learned a lot from this experience and I am still pretty confident about next week."
The Washington Post and The Gazette (Colorado Springs, Colo.) contributed to this report.
