"She actually plopped herself onto the grass and sat cross-legged in the middle of the fairway, fingering one of the dolls that dangled from her golf bag."

The Baltimore Sun's Rick Maese follows up on the Michelle Wie saga by following her at the McDonald's pro-am. Let's just say, not only is it time to get an agent and publicist who can help her remember which wrist she injured, but after reading this, it may be time to call in child welfare services.

Just four days after that wrist ached too much to play, Wie was matched with four amateurs yesterday for the pro-am tournament. There were more course volunteers than spectators around the tee box at 7:30 a.m., watching Wie wince slightly and flex her hand, trying to shake the pain from her fingertips. She walked to her trainer, who massaged Wie's hand and fingers.

Golfer officially injured and controversy over, right? Not quite.

The hand the trainer rubbed - the one with the tightly wrapped wrist - was her right one. In withdrawing from last week's tournament, Wie cited pain in her left wrist, which she hurt this year.

Wie teed off, and for 18 holes, a golfer who's usually full of expression and emotion didn't show any signs of pain. She didn't look at her wrist - either of them - didn't flex her hands, didn't try to rub away any pain.

Wie didn't answer questions after finishing her round yesterday, heading from the final green straight to the clubhouse. Her publicist later explained that the golfer still feels chronic pain in her right wrist from a previous injury and confirmed that it was the left wrist that forced her to withdraw last week. He said a final decision would be made today on whether Wie would compete at this week's LPGA Championship.

This is particularly grim... 

Wie played OK in yesterday's pro-am. Because it's a best-ball format, it's difficult to quantify her performance with scores or stats. While she hit some fairways and some greens, Wie also missed several shots, did nothing worthy of an ovation and failed to sink a single putt of any length.

Late in the round, Wie's energy level was nearly nonexistent, like a thermometer dropped in a bucket of ice. On the second-to-last hole, she actually plopped herself onto the grass and sat cross-legged in the middle of the fairway, fingering one of the dolls that dangled from her golf bag.

For a moment, Wie didn't seem to notice that her back was turned to one of her playing partners, who stood just a few feet away and was addressing his ball. She rose to her feet and the group continued the round.

Just as puzzling, on two of the last three holes, Wie didn't even attempt a putt, scooping her ball as soon as a playing partner sank his and walking onto the next tee.

Last week, at the Ginn Tournament, ESPN.com reported that she showed "little energy" and barely interacted with her caddie or playing partners. "I kind of felt bad for her," playing partner Alena Sharp told ESPN.com. "She didn't seem happy."

And Maese nails what bugs many about this...

If Wie feigned injury to escape a harsh Tour penalty last week, it's a slap in the face to a sport that relies on honesty, a game in which both the weekend hacker and the Tour money leader self-report their infractions. It's why this sport more than any other can reflect a competitor's true character.

But let's not assume that Wie orchestrated last week's mess. The LPGA, her agent and her parents were all complicit, and all deserve more than a wrist-slap for this wrist flap.

Comments

[cmoore]

She acts like someone who wants to quit playing under so much pressure. Stanford may be her ticket out of the spotlight.

[mikeblake]

i've now filed under "who cares."

just not interested anymore.

[Blader]

A 15 year old girl pouts her way through something she'd rather not do somewhere she'd rather not be.

It's not like it never happens.

[Eric Stratton]

she's not 15 anymore.

I'm a a fan of MW, and not much of a fan of Morgan Pressel...

...but the peashooter seems a lot more stable than MW and last year this time I thought it was the exact opposite.

MW has to make her mind up as to whether or not she really wants to be a golfer. and if so, show up, shut up, and let the clubs do the talking - in ladies events only!

ES

[86general]

She's a kid, and adults wilt under less pressure. I suppose it's nice pressure to have, and maybe she chose it, but I still want to cut her some slack.

I hope she can re-attain amateur status and play college golf. Whoever said that might save her is right.

[Ed]

Uh, you don't think the sponsors might want their millions back if Michelle were to try to become an amateur again?


Trouble with taking the money is there is no going back. Welcome to adulthood. Or the Duramed Futures Tour.

[86general]

Oooh you're right about that, Ed. Didn't think of that. You hear about people getting amateur status back all the time. But it's guys like Dillard Pruitt, not Nike stars like MW.

[Tuna]

I think putting Wie and Co. in the "who cares" file is the right approach.

[clashman]

isn't "who cares" whats wrong with this country right now?
as curtis mayfield sang "keep on pushing"

[Tuna]

Well, you are right, clashman, too few care about standards of behavior anymore in this country.

In the Wie case, by "who cares" I mean I'm so turned offed by her and the po$$e around her that I wouldn't walk across the street to see her play.

[clashman]

well said tuna. i wouldn't either. and the heart of the matter is as you said $$$

[MJN]

If she were to ever become herself again, she’d be awesome.