Wednesday, July 7, 2004 | 9:12 a.m.
Adam Candee covers golf for the Sun. Reach him at (702) 259-4085 or by e-mail at [email protected].
Opening this week with a meaty item from the women's game: Michelle Wie and fellow teen phenom Paula Creamer tied for low amateur honors in 13th place at last weekend's U.S. Women's Open, both earning exemptions into next year's Open.
That is good news considering the uproar within the women's ranks after the United States Golf Association granted Wie a special exemption into this year's field -- a courtesy previously reserved for former champions and accomplished players.
While it is understandable for veteran players such as Juli Inkster to speak out against that decision, the reality is that the LPGA's ability to capitalize on the positive momentum created by Annika Sorenstam's turn with the boys at Colonial last year hinges directly on Wie. Other stellar amateurs such as Creamer and first-day Open sensation Brittany Lincicome have remarkable ability, but they have yet to capture the public imagination like Wie has.
In the fleeting attention span of today's sporting society, there is no time to force Wie into any dues-paying activities. If she and her father, B.J., choose to slow down her march toward the pro ranks, that is another question entirely -- one that must get complicated for the Wies as paydays like this weekend's $60,602 go unclaimed while she is an amateur.
But for as long as Wie is willing to fly in from Hawaii and play for no dollars, the LPGA would be foolish not to include its one bankable TV draw in as many events as possible. If that does not sit well with the LPGA veterans -- and it is possible that some are genuinely concerned about a 14-year-old girl not being given the chance to develop personally and athletically -- then they need to consider whether it really matters to them if their game gets a shot at consistent mainstream attention.
Open the encyclopedia to the euphoria around the U.S. women's soccer team in 1999 and the ensuing failed WUSA experiment for proof of the sporting public's fickle tastes. The window is open, but it won't be for long.
Let's applaud Kim Saiki for a second consecutive week for her excellent early showing at the U.S. Women's Open.
Anyone who watched the Open through the first two days likely saw Saiki charging up the leaderboard with the kind of confidence that she displayed in winning the first professional tournament of her 13-year LPGA career the week before in Rochester, N.Y. She stood just one shot off the lead at 4-under after two rounds.
True, Saiki faded in two rounds after the cut to finish in a seven-way tie for 20th place. But in the toughest tournament of the season, that can easily be attributed to the Orchards Golf Club course as much as anything.
We reported a few weeks back that former UNLV women's golf standout Sunny Oh is experiencing some growing pains on the LPGA Futures Tour as she breaks into the professional ranks this summer. And while we can't say that she is out of the woods yet, it looks like there might be some light for Oh as she battles toward a likely trip to Q-school in the fall.
Oh finished in a tie for 36th at the GMAC Futures Golf Classic in Michigan a couple of weeks back, earning her a $355 payday. Hey, compared to a missed cut and the pizza money she earned in her first two events, that will do just fine for now.
Eight tournaments remain in the schedule for the LPGA's developmental tour, meaning that Oh would need some impressive finishes in a hurry to earn one of five exemptions on next year's big tour. Really, she would probably need a win, or at least a handful of top 10 showings, to make enough cash for that.
Even Oh did not really expect to earn her card this year after leaving the Rebels' program this summer after two successful years that vaulted the young program into the national spotlight. She said at that time that her goal was to earn a pass to the final stage of Q-school, meaning she needs to finish between sixth and 15th on the money list.
As the women's professional game continues its slow expansion into the golfing mainstream, Oh's finish at the GMAC event highlights just how far the game is spreading across the planet.
Within Oh's multi-way tie were players from six countries: Scotland; Thailand; Sweden; ever-present South Korea; the United States; and Puerto Rico.
No big surprise came from the Las Vegas Country Club board allowing Steve Wynn's offer to purchase the golf course through buying up memberships at $50,000 apiece to pass without even a turn of the head.
LVCC is one of the few old-guard places anywhere in this town and many of its members like it that way. While most of Las Vegas runs on the idea that history is meant to be constantly re-invented, much of what you find inside the club looks like it dates back 40 years -- and that's a good thing.
Also, a buyout of $50,000 is not really significant to many homeowners and golf members in the club, especially weighed against keeping one of the city's nicest golf courses private and readily available.
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