That whole line that Vijay, and now Campbell, take about it taking a spot away from a touring pro is just hooie. If the guys that Annika/Wie are taking spots from were that good, they wouldn't need an exemption, they'd already be exempt.
Would the general public possibly buy more tickets to come see Wie play, or some European journeyman that's ranked 250+ in the world? For the sponsor, I don't even think the decision is close.
Have you noticed how there hasn't been a lot of Morgan Pressel talk lately? Where are her quotes? Oh, that's right. She's 32nd on the money list and has played 7 events. Michelle would be 13th on the money list in two events if I'm not mistaken. No big uproar from Pressel over Wie's exemption into the women's open. Not a big surprise, as Wie would be exempt if she had status on the LPGA.
I love that Michelle has big dreams and keeps challenging herself against the men. I hope she does qualify for the men's US Open, and really, there is no reason to think that she won't. The only way she won't is if she throws up on herself I feel. The more she plays with the men, the less this will happen. She won't feel any nerves after a while, unless she starts thinking about history.
She was in the final pairing at the US Women's Open last year and took the time to think about it, got nervous, and hit all manner of shitty shots. It can happen to anyone. Look at Gore and Goosen last year. Once you start thinking about the history of doing something, the pressure comes down on you even more.
But Michelle was in a different place then. She was an amatuer and there were a lot of questions up in the air about what her future would be.
Now she's a pro and has more money than she'll ever need. She's made a cut against men overseas. She won a local qualifer against men. Her only job is to get better at golf. She's made $180,000 on the LPGA in two weeks this year. I won't make that in 3 YEARS!
I fully encourage her to keep trying. I always want to know where she stands in a tourney.
I just think that eventually, she'll be sick of being a journeyman on the PGA tour, or the Nationwide tour. I don't think she'll ever be a top player, or even 2nd or 3rd tier on the PGA Tour. I think she'll be able to play well enough, in time, to keep her card on the PGA Tour if that's the route she wants to go. But after a few years of missed cuts and early weekend tee times, I'm sure she'll realize her calling is to try to become the best ever on the LPGA.
Tiger never got to play with Nicklaus in his prime. Unless Annika has totally lost it, Wie will get MANY opportunities to play with the "best ever" in her prime. When she gets into her 20's, I imagine Wie will start looking at Annika's accomplishments, and start knocking away at them one by one. Making $70-80k a week on the LPGA sounds like a lot more fun than making 5K a week making cuts on the PGA.
Right now though, she's a kid. She has her dreams and the corporate financial backing, and encouragement, to chase them. When she gets older, she'll realize that it is really, really difficult to play in the Masters. You have to be really, really, really good to do it. Once she gives up on that dream, she will absolutely dominate the LPGA. Moreso than Sorenstam. Moreso than Woods on the PGA circa 2000-2002.
Personally, I hope she does play well enough somewhere to get an exemption to the Masters. And I absolutely KNOW CBS does too. NBC is just frothing at the mouth hoping she makes it into the US Open. She won't make the cut, but my guess is that it will be the best ratings ever for Thurs/Fri coverage. Especially if she can keep it close to the cut line.
She drives ratings and creates interest wherever she plays. That's superstardom in a nutshell. It won't be until her 20's that it starts to fade if she never wins anything.
