Posted at 7:45 a.m., Tuesday, September 27, 2005
Wie to debut in Japan on men's tour
Associated Press
TOKYO — Honolulu's Michelle Wie will play in a top-tier men's event in November on the Japanese golf tour.Wie turns 16 next month when she is expected to turn pro. Wie, of Korean heritage, has never played in Japan but has a big following there.
She will compete in the Nov. 24-27 Casio World Open, one of the richest events on Japan's men's tour, organizers said today. She will be the second woman to play in a JGTO tour event and the first since Sweden's Sophie Gustafson failed to make the cut in the 2003 Casio World Open.
Wie, a Punahou School student, has competed against men five times, three of those on the PGA Tour, but has not made a cut. She missed the cut in the 2004 Sony Open by one shot at age 14, and this summer was inside the cut line with three holes to play at the John Deere Classic until a double bogey on the 16th hole.
Wie, who will play in the Samsung World Championship on the LPGA Tour next month, has finished in the top three at four LPGA events this year, including two majors. She was runner-up at the LPGA Championship, three shots behind Annika Sorenstam, and tied for third at the Women's British Open, where she wound up seven shots behind.
