Post by bobawiefan on Mar 28, 2012 12:27:09 GMT -5
Soon-to-be-grad Michelle Wie is ready to win
By Larry Bohannan, The Desert Sun
Michelle Wie of the USA, who is about to graduate from Stanford, will soon be a full-time golfer.
"I got my grades in today, passed all of my classes," Michelle Wie said Tuesday.
With her classes passed, Wie will now graduate from Stanford in the coming weeks, meaning that she will no longer be the half-student, half-LPGA player she had been for the last four and a half years. As she prepared for what she called "the real world," Wie said she is completely happy with her decision to put off a full-time LPGA career to get a college degree.
"I think it was just such a big goal of mine, and I'm so proud of myself for sticking with it," Wie said as she prepares for the Kraft Nabisco Championship this week. "But I'm also more than ready just to jump in full speed ahead with golf, and I'm really looking forward to the season."
With more time to practice and set a schedule of working out and resting for events, Wie is hoping to return to the LPGA winner's circle after a winless 2011 season.
"I want to win more. I mean, that's the big thing," Wie said. "I feel like it's been pretty mediocre so far. I want to be the best player I can be and the best in general."
For all Wie has done on the LPGA, including two wins, the 22-year-old will always be associated with the Kraft Nabisco. It was nine years ago, in 2003, when Wie made her debut in the major championship and played in the final group on Sunday with Patricia Meunier-LeBouc and Annika Sorenstam. Three years later, she missed a playoff with Karrie Webb and Lorena Ochoa in the event by a single shot.
"I have a lot of good experiences here, but I'm more about creating new ones," Wie said. "I want to create new memories, and that's why I'm excited to play this week, especially coming off a very tough week the last couple of weeks. I'm ready to turn things around."
Wie missed the cut badly at the Kia Classic last week and her only other start this year was a tie for 59th in the HSBC Champions event.
Some of her tough rounds have been because of an old adversary, her putting. After experimenting with a belly putter, Wie is making a switch again this week back to one of her old, shorter putters.
"I worked a lot with David (Leadbetter) today, and like I said earlier, I have to trust my instincts," Wie said. "Sometimes I have a very large tendency to over-think and try too hard, and putting is one of those things that can not work so well when you try too hard."
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Bohannan covers golf for The Desert Sun, which like USA TODAY is owned by Gannett. For more coverage of the Kraft Nabisco Championship, go to mydesert.com.
