Michelle Wie & Q-School

[jambalaya]

Looks like Bri Vega shot her way out of the tournament with an 81 and Ashley Prang is at 77.

[Awsi Dooger]

Looks like I should have known who Shiho Oyama is. She's ranked #42 in the world and one very sharp LPGA analyst picked her to win the qualifying tournament:

http://mlyhlss.blogspot.com/2008/12/...as-2008-q.html

[PEZGolf]

Like many of you and many golf fans in general, I am rooting for Stacy Lewis, considering her problems with scoliosis and the required surgery on her spine. Also, she showed a great personality during her interviews in the Women's Open, when she was the leader after 3 rounds. She showed good attitude going into Q School by saying that she was prepared, especially mentally: "There's a lot at stake. But it's not life or death. It's not like I'm never going to play golf again. I've had that before."

Her 69 yesterday has her tied with Michelle Wie for sixth place, so Stacy is off to a good start.

[Fourputt]

Ms. Wie is doing quite well again today, -3 through 13 and in a tie for 2nd at the moment. Just 4 back of the leader. It would take quite a meltdown for her not to get her card...


Or something like another DQ. I can't imagine that she would take any such risk this week. If I was in that position I wouldn't even scratch my nose without checking with a rules official first. In an ordinary tournament, you're just out of that week... here it would knock you out for the whole year.

Update... she's now through 15 and climbing the ladder... -5 today and -8 for the tournament... just 2 back of Oyama.

[Q.Q.Quillume]

This weekend's Final Qualifying Tournament is a 90-hole tournament.
Top 70 & ties after 72 holes continue to the final round on Sunday.

Players finishing 1-20 "will earn Priority in Category 11."
Players finishing 21-30 "will earn Priority in Category 16."
Players finishing 31-40 "will receive Priority in Category 20."

If there are ties for the 20th, 30th and/or 40th positions, these positions will be decided by playoffs.

Above info info extracted from this URL .

I'm a little - well, a lot - fuzzy on what Categories 11, 16 and 20 are, but they are pretty good things since an awful lot of women are competing for these slots.

[Fourputt]

Michelle finished Thursday's round tied for 1st at -10. Nice round of 7 under par. So far she is living up to her press.

[Q.Q.Quillume]

Looks like Bri Vega shot her way out of the tournament with an 81...

Big Break Bri definitely shot herself in the foot yesterday. Fortunately she showed a lot grit today and refused to give up.

Today's 69 puts her at T106 (four strokes from T66 - with players still on the course). It's definitely an uphill battle to get to 70th place or better at the end of 72 holes and to get to 40th or better at the end of 90 holes, but it's possible however unlikely. Good luck, Bri!

[tjy355]

I see Kim Welch is playing in the final Q. I thought that I had heard she already got her card by finishing top ten on the Duramed Futures tour ??

[PEZGolf]

Both Michelle and Stacy are living up to high expectations---congrats to both:

T1 T6 Michelle Wie [C] -7 F -10 69 65 - - - 134
T1 1 Shiho Oyama [L] -2 F -10 64 70 - - - 134
3 T6 Stacy Lewis [L] -6 F -9 69 66 - - - 135

[Q.Q.Quillume]

I see Kim Welch is playing in the final Q. I thought that I had heard she already got her card by finishing top ten on the Duramed Futures tour ??

For being #6-#10 (Kim was #10) on the Duramed Futures Tour Welch qualifies for Category 17.

If she does well enough in the Q-School Tournament, she can move up to Category 11 or Category 16, either of which (especially Category 11) would make it easier for her to get into more and/or more prestigious tournaments. If she bombs in the Q-School Tournament she still has the Category 17 card. All LPGA Tour Cards are not created equal.

[jambalaya]

Ashley Prang made a decent recovery today moved from T114 to T80. Does everyone get to play tomorrow? I hope Wie makes it. It will put a charge into the LPGA. It will be interesting to see if she can win a tournament next year. When was the last time she actually won something?

[ganjagolfer]

i think a diploma from stanford is worth more than an lpga card. is michele still in school?

[st0wgolf08]

i think a diploma from stanford is worth more than an lpga card. is michele still in school?

very true, I hope she is. I doubt she will if she gets her card though.

[Fourputt]

i think a diploma from stanford is worth more than an lpga card. is michele still in school?

I believe that she is still in her 2nd year at the moment, but what happens when she gets her Tour card is anyone's guess.

I'm not one to scoff at getting an education, but Michelle Wie's position right now is quite salable. If she continues on her current Q School pace, she could be worth a few million in endorsements almost as soon as she leaves the course. A diploma from Stanford (or anywhere else) lacks the potential for immediate value that she can get from playing a regular Tour schedule. Then too, there are ways for her to continue her education on a slower pace while still maximizing her opportunities on Tour.

[Awsi Dooger]

For being #6-#10 (Kim was #10) on the Duramed Futures Tour Welch qualifies for Category 17.

Very true. And apparently there is a major gap between Category 11 and Category 16 or lower. This is how the LPGA analyst Hound Dog put it a few months ago:

http://hdlpga.blogspot.com/2008/08/n...-priority.html "Category 15 is where players start getting left out of tournament fields regularly." The 6-10 players on the Duramed money list -- Song Yi Choi, Jessica Shepley, Leah Wigger, Sophia Sheridan and Kim Welch -- will have an LPGA card but probably not many opportunities to use it in 2009, unless they make the Top 20 this week. There have been estimates that Category 17 players may not make more than 5 events. It probably doesn't help their chances that the tour will have 3 fewer tournaments next season. Low status players are dependent on exempt players skipping events. Next season the brutal reality is fewer events to skip. The Duramed 6-10 only marginally improve their positions via 21-30 this week, moving from Category 17 to 16. That might mean a few extra starts. Top 20 basically means a full season. The Duramed website is running a good summary article every day after play concludes. Sensible since a majority of the players in Q School finals, 75 of the 139, are current Duramed members, along with 29 Duramed alums. They had some details on Kim Welch's round today: http://www.duramedfuturestour.com/Ne...-12-04-08.html "Long-hitting Tour member Kim Welch also got it going today, carding a 4-under 68 to move into the group tied for 11th. Welch eagled the 505-yard 14th hole on the Legends Course. She hit her 4-wood 235 yards to the front edge of the green and then drained a 40-plus-footer for the eagle 3. She added four more birdies, two bogeys and two saves for a round that even kept Sacramento-based caddie John Wood, who normally works for PGA Tour player Hunter Mahon, on his toes. “I didn’t feel great on the range this morning because I was pulling and hooking everything,” said Welch, who won both her first professional event this season, as well as the Golf Channel’s “Big Break: Ka’ anapali” show. “But I got it done today without feeling super-confident with my swing.” *** Looks like a favorable pairing for Kim tomorrow. She is back on the more difficult Legends course, same as today, but she reversed the typical tendency of the field by scoring 5 shots better on Legends than Champions in the first two rounds. Kim is paired with Paige Mackenzie tomorrow. About two months ago Paige invited Kim to fill out the field in her inaugural Paige Mackenzie Charity Shootout in the Seattle area, designed to promote LPGA golf for a possible return to that area. Paige is an alum of Washington while Kim went to Washington State. Kim won that Paige Mackenzie Shootout, beating a field of about 12 LPGA players, and fittingly winning it with a Big Break-style closest to the pin tiebreaker out of a bunker.

[JonnyGolf]

i think a diploma from stanford is worth more than an lpga card. is michele still in school?

She's probably already made $5M without a Stanford degree. I'm not sure she's going to make that anytime soon with a degree from Stanford.

[PEZGolf]

Looks like a favorable pairing for Kim tomorrow. She is back on the more difficult Legends course, same as today, but she reversed the typical tendency of the field by scoring 5 shots better on Legends than Champions in the first two rounds. Kim is paired with Paige Mackenzie tomorrow. About two months ago Paige invited Kim to fill out the field in her inaugural Paige Mackenzie Charity Shootout in the Seattle area, designed to promote LPGA golf for a possible return to that area. Paige is an alum of Washington while Kim went to Washington State. Kim won that Paige Mackenzie Shootout, beating a field of about 12 LPGA players, and fittingly winning it with a Big Break-style closest to the pin tiebreaker out of a bunker.

Response: At first, I was surprised to see that Paige Mackenzie was at Q School. I knew she was not having the greatest year, but I thought she made enough money to avoid going back to earn her card. When I looked it up, I see that she made only $78,807 this year. In 2005, I remember that "Golfweek" picked her as Amateur of the Year, and she had an excellent collegiate career at Washington. I hope she makes the Top 20. She is tied for 11th right now.

[JonnyGolf]

2 over through 2 today. We'll see if she can pull herself together or melts down.