By Jay Betsill
Michelle Wie, one of the biggest stars in all of women’s golf, won the biggest event of the year when she topped the field at Pinehurst No. 2 to win the U.S. Women’s Open. After bursting on the scene as a teenager, she gained a lot of attention when she played in multiple PGA Tour events with the men although she had not won on the LPGA Tour.
“I think that without your downs, without the hardship, I don’t think you appreciate the ups and much as you do,” Wie said. “I think the fact that I struggled so much, the fact that I kind of went through a hard period of my life, the fact that this trophy is right next to me, it means so much more to me than it ever would have when I was 15.”
This was the second straight week that the USGA staged a national championship on Pinehurst No. 2. Following last week’s runaway victory by Martin Kaymer at the U.S. Open, Wie was the only player to break par, finishing 2-under to beat Stacy Lewis by two strokes.
NOTES
— Kevin Streelman made PGA Tour history by becoming the first player to birdie his final seven holes to win an event when he beat Sergio Garcia and K.J. Choi by one shot to win the Travelers Championship at the TPC River Highlands. He earned $1.12 million for the win.
“It’s probably my favorite nine holes on the PGA Tour,” Streelman said. “But you can’t plan for something like that to happen. It just kind of falls into place.”
— The big news of the week on the PGA Tour was the announcement that 14-time major winner Tiger Woods had committed to play in next week’s Quicken Loans National at Congressional Country Club in Bethesda, MD. Woods has not played since undergoing microdiscectomy surgery for a pinched nerve in his back on March 31.
“After a lot of therapy I have recovered well and will be supporting my foundation next week at the Quicken Loans National. I’ve just started to hit full shots but it’s time to take the next step. I will be a bit rusty but I want to play myself back into competitive shape. Excited for the challenge ahead,” Woods said on his Facebook page.
