Michelle Wie goes wild at Evian Masters: Teen shares lead with Ochoa and Webb following a 66

gosh, it's a shame bubbles putts so lousy and missed a birdie at the 14th today, she had to settle for a measly 66. I see that Brittany is once again amazingly consistent, 2 consecutive 78's. Oops, I forgot, isn't it better to have a lower score in golf?

Funny how the same people that cry about Michelle's "unfair" and "cruel" treatment have no problem mocking any young women that has the audacity to question Michelle Wie or worse yet beat her head to head.

Why don't you hold off on you're trash talking until Michelle actually wins something.

You're right again Ford, maybe Britanny and Morgan could team up and play best ball to help them out in stroke play events. I imagine there are some wet pillows in France after these two days.

who's trash talking? MW lost 1 round to Britany in match play, does that make Lincicome a bettre golfer? Hardly, sure Michelle has not won yet. I can't wait to see it happen. The reality is that she is THE most consistent women golfer in the world right now.

Ford, The Wie Warriors just can't contain themselves. As far as they're concerned, the Evian is over already. Bubbles has WON! And if you think that they've gone berserk now, you ain't seen nuthin' yet. Brittany may have won an LPGA event, and Morgan may have been US Amateur champion and 2nd in the US Women's Open, but compared to Bubbles they are stumblebums and worthy of nothing but contempt from the Wie Warriors. Nice. The weird part about the undying devotion to MW by her legions is that they don't care if she wins. When she fades in the next two days, as she surely will, they will be just as fanatical for Wie and scornful of her opponents as if she won going away. And Bubbles will still be "only 16 years old."

Engaging in an intelligent debate regarding Michelle Wie with a guy calling himself Maui John is well...pointless. I might as well go to the Bronx and start bad mouthing Derek Jeter.

John--Anybody who claims that Britany is a better golfer then Michelle Wie would be mistaken. I personally have never made that claim, but she does have something Michelle doesn't and that is a victory on the LPGA tour. One thing that is clear is that Wie fans love to boost up their heroine by attacking and insulting the character and records of her rivals. I personally find this practice hypocrtical and childish. Michelle Wie's accomplishments should speak for themselves, Morgan Pressel jokes don't help you're cause. I would think that Michelle and her fans should expect more from her and from themselves.

At the 2005 Evian Michelle shot 75-70-68-68. She is two strokes better than her final score last year after just two rounds.

Isn't it wonderful watching a SIXTEEN YEAR OLD GOLFER develop before your very eyes.

Sure, the hype and expectations around her are both a little overblown. The truth is though is that she is good for the game. I am not a golfer but to see a 16 year old run with the big girls and even even try to tackle the men is pretty entertaining. These blogs just add to my enjoyment, to see people get so opinionated over this cracks me up. Viva bubbles and her bashers alike!!!

Wonderful indeed one-putt, I was just thinking to myself how much Michelle has grown and developed as golfer last week when she was being carted off the course on a stretcher after shooting 8 over for 27 holes.

Poor Brittany... Did she think it was that easy to be like Michelle Wie and consistently placed at top? Because of her big mouth, everybody is looking for Brittany's score after every round, and what do we find...what goes around, comes around...

Measuring a golfer's development round to round is hardly a sound technique. Measuring development based on scores from previous tournaments is even more pointless. Michelle has been in this position before, she has proved she can contend--The real developmental hurdle she must clear is actually winning.

Based on you're logic Michelle is actually regressing as a golfer in relation to making the cut in a PGA tour event: See last years John Deere versus this years.

Speaking of trash talkers, here's Morgan Pressel in a 6-way battle tied for 59th...yeah some rivalry, eat some crow girl.

Here's the deal, to golf consistently at this level is what makes golf so challenging right? Yeah MW has not won yet and after her last attempt to play with the boys it seems to me she ought to wait on that whole scene, but having said that, it's freakin' scary that a 16 year old girl can golf this consistently with the best women in the world. What if she actually does get better?

Until recently, teenage female athletes could hope to compete with their elders either in ice skating or gymnastics. MW is the first to add golf to this list. As long as she consistently finishes in the top 5, I don't see how anyone can write her off.

Don't worry...Wie-Wee still has time to CHOKE & PUKE ! ! !

Ford,

Just as you complain about "Wie Warriors" lashing out at other golfers, I and others can complain about Alex and John D and UnderSmails with their flogging of Michelle and adulation of anyone who places above Wie in a tournament. Don't label all respondents who lean one way or the other so broadly, or you will get labelled by the actions of misogynists like Smails.

And speaking of the Dark Trio, why are you OK with their constant harranguing of Wie but not OK with shots fired at other golfers? I agree with you, there is no need to take shots at Brittany or Morgan, but the things said about them pale in comparison to the nastiness that flows from The Three about Wie.

As for Brittany, or Morgan, or any other golfer who has taken shots in the press at Michelle - just as Michelle has to expect to receive criticism for not making a PGA cut and not winning an LPGA event, those golfers should expect to receive the same when they fail to back up their shots against Michelle with performance. There are plenty of players on the PGA who finished ahead of Tiger in a tournament. Some have beaten Tiger in match play events. If they said they were better than Tiger, or complained about the attention Tiger receives or how he goes about handling his affairs, I think they would feel the heat for some time after that. And if they play with Tiger after such comments, well, as he once said about a match play opponent, "Nighty night." That's the way it works when you engage in a war of words in the press.

Bottom line: Brittany and Morgan didn't need to be confrontational in their media discussions of Wie, but they chose to be. So now their performances will be compared to Wie's on a regular basis. And for every Smails there will be a Maui John who will shoot the other way.

(Sorry Maui John, you do NOT deserve to be compared to Smails, you are not that far out of line. I don't see the need to peck at Brittany - others will do it in the press anyway - but your comments are far from the level of ridiculousness that comes out of Smails.)

Ken, Candace, et al, In case you hadn't noticed. Dot started this blog by praising Bubbles for her bogey-free, best-in-her-competitive-career round of 66. So how do you yo-yo's respond? By heaping scorn on Brittany Lisicome and Morgan Pressel who weren't even mentioned in the blog. Wie Warriors, your idol has done her best! Exult in it! Glory in her achievement! Go gaga over her! She deserves it! You Wie-wee's should be revelling in her success! So what are you doing instead? Grousing about how you'd like to have Brittany and Morgan come to some dire end. I tell you, you Wie Warriors would kick if somebody hanged you with a new rope.

Maui,

It's not scary to me but just a testimonial as to how the LPGA stinks. The truth is that most of them are only as good as a male three-handicapper.

CANDACE

Morgan Pressel did chose to make negative comments about Michelle Wie in the past, but most recently at the HSBC she resisted the rather pointed effforts of the interviewer to get her to make comments like that about Michelle Wie.

Brittany Lincicome resisted efforts by the HSBC interviewer to get her to make negative comments about Wie--until the interviewer tricked her by taking Wie comments out of context, and making it seem that Wie lacked respect for what Lincome had done in beating her.


Nevertheless, since it was just 3 weeks ago that Wie critics were dancing with joy over the defeat of Wie and celbrating Brittany as better than Wie--based upon the eventsj of just one week--it was probably inevitable that some Wie supporters would notice that Brittany is now 21 strokes back of Wie after two rounds of the Evian Masters.

Brittany and Morgan can't resist trashing Michelle in the media because they can't contain their jealousy and envy the way the other LPGA players can. Natalie Glubis and Paula Creamer are a little better at it espy Natalie who's always been gracious in her comments about Michelle.

Brittany will be a one trick pony, she'll never win another. She's just not as good as she thinks she is. As for Morgan she's such a head case she'll probably have a lot of trouble winning even though she has talent - at least I think she has even though she hasn't shown much of it recently. So much for learning to win at the junior level!

I just don't get it sometimes, why is this blog is so polarized on Michelle. The little jab I made at Brittany was just to point out that MW consistency is amazing, and yes, even more so because of her age. That is just the simple fact, why does that bug the crap out of some of you. I do not golf anymore, (4 kids, 2 jobs and 1 wife) just too busy but this is all very entertaining. I would not know who any of these players were if it were not for Michelle. She is starting to do for womens golf what Tiger dhas done for mens. And yes, she needs to win, she will soon enough.

Maul John,

Don't worry that there are people who don't like MW. Not everybody likes Tiger. I think Michelle understands that and does not pay attention to negativity. I am so glad that she has moved on since two weeks ago and can focus on her golf. That kind of ability to concentrate really is special.

"Comment from: Ford [Visitor]
Wonderful indeed one-putt, I was just thinking to myself how much Michelle has grown and developed as golfer last week when she was being carted off the course on a stretcher after shooting 8 over for 27 holes."

I recall Tiger won the next event after he puked up his guts and withdrew. Do ya think lightning can strike twice? Nah what am I saying, after all Tiger was well into his twenties when that happened to him, Michelle is still only SIXTEEN YEARS OLD.

I guess you wouldn't be satisfied that she gave it her all unless she was lying on the 10th tee in a coma and shock, Schmuck.

Fuhget about Jeter man, don't go there.

BTW I noticed Michelle is sitting atop the leaderboard again.

Candace,

I fully agree with you.

I've found that the Wie Haters are pretty dogmatic, yet that's the primary complaint they have about the Wie Lovers. I find the inconsistency amusing and really their ability to get so wound up over a SIXTEEN YEAR OLD girl makes me laugh. I think the frenzy is far more evident on the haters side than the lovers.

I guess it's not fair that I'm having so much fun. At times it's too easy. They get super annoyed when you say that Michelle Wie is ONLY SIXTEEN YEARS OLD. It's almost Pavlovian. They get confused easily too, esp Smails, who gets me confused with someone else.

Lincicome and Pressel... gee where does one begin. Really the Wie haters are just as guilty as the Wie lovers for dragging these two girls into Wie debates. I can see why the haters like to bring up Lincicome, because she did beat Wie and she has won a tournament. Of course no one cares about who won last year's match play.

However, it amazes me that they like putting Pressel up against Wie. Pressel though has really mellowed on her Wie stance, but maybe it's because there's far less media interest in Pressel these days and there aren't as many interviews. Pressel is currently unhappy with her game, but I think she definitely has potential. It's just not on pace with what she'd like or the hype. Yes hype. When I see Pressel in a Callaway commercial with the likes of Arnold Palmer, Phil Mickelson, and Annika Sorenstam, I'd say that's hype. And why is it okay for Pressel to warrant such a high profile Callaway sponsorship when she hasn't won anything on the LPGA? Oh you mean it's targeting juniors and amateurs? Yes parents, spend your money on expensive Callaways so that your daughters can win all the junior and amateur tournaments, but fall short once they hit the LPGA.

Theoretically, according to the theories put out by so many who say Wie is doing it all wrong, Pressel should be a phenom. She has learned to win by winning, unlike Wie. She has dominated the national junior and amateur tours, unlike Wie. She's dedicated herself to solely playing on the LPGA, unlike Wie. Gee, why is she consistently finishing behind Wie in tournaments? I feel badly for Pressel. She's a victim of those who like her best. Oh and for all those whiners who whine about exemptions, I don't hear Pressel whining after she got her TOUR exemption, which of course is a much bigger deal than some measly tournament exemption.

As far as Creamer, she's used to pull Pressels too, but she's learned to negotiate the media minefields far better and Pressel stepped in for Creamer so seamlessly that we've almost forgotten the cattyness.

Dot , Please start a blog about how all Bubbles' rivals are jealous of her. Maybe then the Wie-wee's will rejoice in MW's best-ever round of golf.

Out of curiosity, where does the name "Bubbles" come from?

Maui John
The fact that Brittany shot 78 has nothing to do with anything, this is a stroke play tournament, the player against the golf course. No one in the field is trying to beat the the particular score of anyone else at this stage, they are trying to beat the golf course and go as low as possible. The most consistent? Maybe for the last few months, do it over ten years like Annika and we can talk.

As far as the Wie lovers go, they have already annointed her into the hall of fame as the best ever. Potential shouldn't be confused with actual performance. MW has the potential to be among the best ever, first she needs to learn how to control herself down the stretch when the tournament is on the line. The papers are full of the next Babe Ruth, the next Bart Starr, etc., etc.,etc., who don't pan out. Hopefully MW can learn to get herself under control for a full 72 holes and earn the accolades that you are already giving her.

Behold the only sane post in this thread (besides mine)

*****

Comment from: gpro [Visitor]
Maui John
The fact that Brittany shot 78 has nothing to do with anything, this is a stroke play tournament, the player against the golf course. No one in the field is trying to beat the the particular score of anyone else at this stage, they are trying to beat the golf course and go as low as possible. The most consistent? Maybe for the last few months, do it over ten years like Annika and we can talk.

As far as the Wie lovers go, they have already annointed her into the hall of fame as the best ever. Potential shouldn't be confused with actual performance. MW has the potential to be among the best ever, first she needs to learn how to control herself down the stretch when the tournament is on the line. The papers are full of the next Babe Ruth, the next Bart Starr, etc., etc.,etc., who don't pan out. Hopefully MW can learn to get herself under control for a full 72 holes and earn the accolades that you are already giving her.
*****

-George

Bill, The handle "Bubbles" was, I believe, coined by erstwhile poster Under Par. It was probably meant to remind people of Michelle Wie's effervescent personality, her bubbly non-chalance as when she referred to her sparkly watch. I liked it and have used it in my posts, as have some others. As far as I know, there is nothing pejorative or condescending implied with this nickname. There are too many other women on the LPGA tour named Michelle to simply refer to her by her given name, as would be the case with Annika, Morgan, or Lorena. Nobody ever called him George Ruth. He was affectionately known as "Babe". So there you have it, Bill. Bubbles it is!

Bubbles it is, your time is appreciated...

As a floowo up to previous blogs I have sent, I am still tired of her, her family, and Nike already...

I am a golf professional., I refuse to have Nike in my shop because the way they have exploited "Bubbles"... I have limited Callaway produce because they endorse Pressel who I detest...

When Wie wins, (and it is coming soon) wait until you see the marketing deal we all will be subjected to...

Make that "follow"... -2 for spelling.

You know, I was thinking today about all this and it came a little clearer, as much of a fan of MW as I am, I must say that all the hype surrounding her is too much. This is just the way our society, at least Madison Ave. anyway. Not just over Michelle but any young sports phenom. It leaves them in quite a spot, if they don't perform and live up to the expectations placed on them, it is considered a dissapointment.
And yes, consistency over a longer period of time (with some wins) will ultimately decide where her place in golf history will be, either one of the best to ever play the game, or just a youngster with a lot of talent that got burned by being pushed too soon and too fast. Only time will tell.

Well said, Maui. I think we are finally in agreement at least on the issue of hype.

There is, however a downside to all this hype as you touched upon, in the form of expectations. Consistent play even numerous top 5's and even a few wins as you say will not cut it for Michelle. She has been billed and she herself has perpetuated the idea that she is a young women with the game to dominate the women and even contend against the men-- anything less then this will be a dissapointment. Is this fair, maybe not, but the lesson is be prepared to deliver upon your claims.

Since we don't know how much she will plau in regular LPGA events, it seems fair at this point to anticipate judging Wie by her performance in the Majors. Her true number one critic on the LPGA is Nancy Lopez, and Nancy Lopez won three Majors.

Well then, that seems reasonable, can WIE all just get along now!

Why not just refer to her as Wie if there are so many other women named Michelle on the tour? Do we ever talk about anyone else named Michelle?

Who is Michelle Wie? I thought all of these blogs were about Michelle McGann.

Ford's is absolutely correct. Many seem to believe that Bubbles bears no responsibility for ratcheting up the expectations. Remember, though, that she has been no innocent babe in the woods with respect to this; she has painted herself as a larger than life female golfer. Thus, she has no one to blame but herself if she has an insurmountable mountain to climb.

Jenney M, A true gentleman would NEVER refer to a lady, especially a SIXTEEN YEAR OLD GIRL, by her surname. When I look at Michelle Wie with her wrap-around sunglasses, her long, dangling earrings, her ultra-short mini-skirt, her cap-toothed smile. her wispy waves at her adoring fans, and her "sparkly wristwatch", it just seems that anything but Bubbles would not be appropriate as a nickname for the Lanky One. No, Jenney, just as Joe DiMaggio was the "Yankee Clipper", Ted Williams was the "Splendid Splinter", And Joe Louis was the "Brown Bomber", Michelle Wie is "Bubbles." Get used to it, Jenney, it's here to stay.

I like Bubbles, it does seem to fit. Anyway, my prediction is that she will have to shoot a 68 to win.

Well seeing that I'm hardly a gentleman, I'll just refer to her as Wie. Of all her nicknames, I like the Big Wiesy.

When I think of a Bubbles, I think of a blonde perky short sorority girl type with pink ribbons in her hair.

I like Wiesy. I don't mind Bubbles. Like words, the problem is not the nickname itself but the negative connotations some detractors try to associate it with. I think it was Under Par, who first used it and I believe he got the name from Don Ho song where you have "tiny bubbles" refrain.

Maui John

Good call on the 68, unfortunately she needed a 67. As I said before, she has to get her nerves under control down the stretch, three bad drives on the back nine did her in again.

She has to get to the point where either her swing can overcome her mind or she can get positive thoughts under pressure. All of the hype and expectations sitting back there in her subconscious is a heck of a lot for anyone to handle, let alone a young kid.