Wie is Disqualified from State Farm Classic
July 24, 2008 by mhueter
Filed under Sports Headlines, golf
I just read on the Golf Chick Blog that because Michelle Wie failed to sign her scorecard on Friday, she was disqualified from the State Farm Classic. Only the LPGA failed to tell her about it until she had completed her round the following day.
Wow, thats a little rediculous. Kind-of makes you think the LPGA is using her for her publicity, right?
According to an article on newsday, Sue Witters, the LPGA’s director of tournament competitions, disqualified Wie in a small office in an LPGA trailer at the golf course after asking her what had happened.
“She was like a little kid after you tell them there’s no Santa Claus,” Witters said.
Wow, that’s really bold. Especially after what Wie has done for the sport.
That is so petty. Unbelieveable.
First off, I do not know much about women’s golf. But I am wondering what the LPGA and fellow female golfers think about Wie competing in the PGA? I guess my question stems from the instant belief that the lack of communication about signing the scorecard(whether purposeful or not) could relate to possible negative feelings towards Wie for competing with men? Please correct me by all means if I am mistaken…
While there are those out there who don’t like the idea of Michelle Wie competing in the PGA, I DON’T believe such feelings of resentment contributed to her scorecard mishap. That was just an oversight that could happen to anyone in the bustle and excitement of finishing a tournament round (and it has happened to others, Padraig Harrington and Stacy Lewis among them).
On the ohter hand, there is speculation that the LPGA let her play the Saturday round because she brings a huge audience…and that we’ll never known for sure.
IMHO the ones who resent Michelle Wie’s playing with the PGA most, are much more likely to be males than females. Males who hate to see a women competing with men and who bitterly resent any perceived privilege or favoritism a women may seem to get.
In her defense, I believe Wie is playing in the Canadian event for the sake of potentially earning enough money to retain her LPGA status (right?).
That said, one big issue with her competing in male events is that she is taking away a slot from someone who likely has a better chance at making the cut for weekend play. On the flipside, it is generally great for the tourney- she (and the tourney) will get a lot of attention just for playing in it.
I don’t think the scorecard debacle had anything to do with her playing in PGA events…I think the Wies and LPGA have plenty of other issues contributing to their unhealthy relationship. I’m willing to bet we only see the surface of it in the media…
I think Michelle is a very talented golfer. I think she needs to get as far away from her father as possible. I would love to see her compete with the men from time to time….in a few years once she has developed into her own as a player/person and has gotten away from the weekly spectacles.
ok – this is going to sound a little harsh – but in a situation like this, where neither side is getting the facts straight – it seems best to just put the facts out. They are not in dispute and they are not a personal opinion.
(1) Wie did not sign her score card – players come off the course and go into an area where they sit down and check their hole scores to make sure they are correct – then they sign their name to confirm that they agree with what is on the card. If they leave the designated area without signing their card – they are disqualified. This is not new – every tournament golfer knows the rule – including Wie.
The PLAYER is responsible for the scorecard – not the caddy, not the scorers in the tent, not the Tournament officials, not the LPGA – the PLAYER alone. That is the rule – Wie knows the rule – and that is why, for once, she is not screaming and crying that what happened was “unfair”.
(unfortunately, some of the public and uninformed members of the media have turned a black and white issue into a conspiracy and/or a complete emotional response because they think Wie is the greatest golfer in the world) (in case you are wondering – she is not)
(2) A mistake was made by a volunteer who took the card outside the designated area and allowed Wie to sign. Once Wie stepped outside of the ropes, she should never have been handed her card to sign. This didn’t change the rule – it just muddled the situation.
(3) If she had not signed the card, the problem on Saturday would never have happened. Wie would have been notified either before she left, or with a phone call that evening that she was DQ’d and why.
(4) Saturday’s round was started early to avoid incoming weather – the TV coverage some people seem to think was live was recorded in the morning.
(5) Wie had a late tee time on Friday, so the problem didn’t happen until evening, and she started early on Saturday – it was not 24 hours later that she was notified of the problem.
Wie was not told until after her round on Saturday because they did not want to embarrass her by pulling her off the course in the middle of the round. The tournament officials knew what happened AFTER she had already started the third round.
Face it – this was one of those awkward situations where there was no good way to handle it. No matter what was done – someone was going to be upset. If they allowed Wie to remain in the tournament, there would have been an open revolt by the rest of the Tour since this is a very simple, black and white rule. The officials did their due diligence with the investigation and did what had to be done.
If the weather had not changed the schedule of play on Saturday, Wie would never have started her Saturday round.
A delayed ruling is not unheard of. Earlier this year, Stewart Cink was DQ’d for an obscure rule about testing the conditions of a bunker – but it was done the next day.
(6) Is Michelle Wie disliked by some men and women on the PGA and LPGA Tours ? Definitely. She has been petulent on course – she has shown little or no respect to some of the games greatest champions, most notably Annika Sorenstam – she has shown disregard to tournament sponsors by walking off when she was having a bad round – she has snubbed the LPGA’s attempts to welcome her by saying that she only wants to play on the PGA Tour – she has disregarded rules that affect Tour members for her own advantage…..she has been arrogant to some of the male players who tried to be nice to her even though they knew she was a side-show and had no business playing in PGA Tour events. (by the way – the men have gotten tired of that game and have just gone about their business – the result of which is a string of dead last or nearly dead last finishes when playing with the men)
It doesn’t matter how many players like or dislike Wie – NONE of them have any influence over the rules. The rules stand by themselves and make no judgement on how likeable or unlikeable a person is. No “feelings” were involved.
The PGA Tour does not discriminate concerning who can play on Tour. The charter says that the PGA Tour is there for the BEST golfers in the world – it doesn’t matter about gender or age (except that you have to be at least 18 to have a Tour card) or nationality. As long as you EARN your way – you are welcome to play on The Tour. (by the way – it is the LPGA that discriminates by gender – by charter, only women are allowed to play on tour)
In the above article, Sue Witter’s quote is an attempt to describe what Wie looked like when she got the news of her DQ. It has nothing to do with the decision she had to make concerning the rule infraction. It was not “bold” as our hostess concluded – it just was. The rule has one option – no signature – DQ. Wie knows the rule. Of COURSE she was upset – she hadn’t played three good rounds back to back like this for 2 years.
Erica called it “petty” – it is far from petty. It is a rule of the game with serious reasons for being. Honor is a very big part of the game – especially on the tournament level – and no golfer worth his or her salt WANTS to break the rules – but it happens. They accept the consequences and move on.
I realize that being honest and honorable isn’t exactly cool in this MTV generation – but it is still alive and well among real golfers.
Last – Megan – Michelle Wie has done nothing FOR the game of golf to this point in her career. She is a tremendous physical talent – but all that talent is tied up in her mushy skull. She has admitted publicly that she hasn’t read the rules very carefully because they are too “boring” for her. (too bad, kid – learn the rules – they are kind of important)
She has accepted invitations into tournaments based on nothing more than her appearance and a few cutesy quotes when she was a precocious 13 year old. To this point, she has not earned anything among the men and has done more harm than good. Her disregard for the rules and traditions of the game have only brought in people who have no knowledge or understanding of the game – as evidenced by this latest issue.
She had some good results when she was a freewheeling 13 / 14 / 15 year old with no real expectations. She could let the ball fly – if she lost, she didn’t lose anything. She was still cute and still a media darling. But the day she signed that big Nike contract, the pressure started – and because she skipped everything between A and Z, she has never learned how to win or how to handle the demands of the adult world. She chose to ignore the example of that Tiger guy by skipping her amateur and possible college career and take the easy cash.
Her actions have also been a bad influence on a handful of other little girls who decided that they would take that same path. Carmen Bandea turned pro very early and announced that she was going to play with the men. She learned quickly that her game was no match even for guys on low level mini-tours. She is now floundering on women’s mini-tours and has only earned a few hundred dollars.
Michelle Wie COULD be a really good professional and a positive example for the game some day – but she has a lot of growing up to do – and that won’t happen until she learns a little humility. Accepting the invitation to Reno-Tahoe shows that she hasn’t learned anything. Three good rounds on a short course with no real challenges and she thinks she is ready to play on the PGA Tour again.
Apologies for being so long winded, but there are a lot of issues and side issues that surface when people who don’t understand what is going on want to storm the castle and burn down what they don’t understand.
My wish ? That people would stop feeling sorry for Wie. The more you feel sorry for her and take her side, the less she will understand the need to grow up.
Everything that has happened to her has been by her own choice. She could have slipped back into her world after she tried to qualify for the Sony (and failed) when she was 13. The media would have died down and she could have spent the next 5 or 6 or 7 years growing up, going to school, REALLY going to college, and learning to play the game – but she chose the fast lane. (and no – her parents aren’t off the hook either – who the heck lets a 13-15 year old little girl what so little common sense make decisions for herself ?)
I hope she grows up and gets an understanding of her limitations. That’s when she’ll start to find out what she is capable of doing. A little humility could take her a long way. I hope she figures out that she needs to EARN something to appreciate it. All these people bending over backwards to GIVE her things are only out for themselves and they will pull the rug out from under her as soon as she becomes old news.
Michelle strikes me as a rather talented golfer who is suffering from “helicopter” parents.
I say this not from a sexist standpoint, but as a male golfer who WANTS the LPGA Tour to be taken seriously for the quality of the golf that is played there.
When she was playing better a few years ago, Michelle’s participation in the PGA Tour was a novelty, due to her prodigious length off the tee.
However, her failed forays into both PGA AND LPGA Tour play has made most outside observers come to realize that she is someone who needs to round out all aspects of her game, INCLUDING mental composure AND game management, which includes SIGNING your scorecard in the proper place…
I think that this is a fairly common event, as other young professionals, including Erica Blasberg have also been DQ’d for not signing their cards in the proper place, in the proper time.
The rule is there to prevent tampering with the scorecards, and they apply equally to everyone…
It’s just one of those administrivia steps that EVERY professional golfer has to learn (sometimes the hard way) to take care of…
You can BET that she WILL NOT forget again…
Jill – Wie has no LPGA status – she is playing the Canadian Open hoping to make enough money to GAIN status. If she finishes in the top 80 on the money list at the end of the year, she gets a card for next year. Non-tour members are allowed 6 sponsor’s exemptions a year to make the number.
I think Michelle is great, hope she can improve this year! She has many fans in japan too
http://japansugoi.com/wordpress/michelle-wie-japanese-golf-commentary/