Wie Draws Crowds At PGA Tour Event As She Battles To Make Cut
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| Wie Draws Crowd At Reno-Tahoe Open |
Golfer Michelle Wie Thursday shot a 1-over-par 73 at the PGA Tour Legends Reno-Tahoe Open at Montreux Golf & Country Club, "which puts her in position to make her first PGA Tour cut in eight tries," according to Dan Hinxman of the RENO GAZETTE-JOURNAL. A gallery of "about 1,000, including her parents, followed Wie" during the round. Tournament Security Dir Scott Freeman, who has worked in that position since the tournament's inception in '99, said of the gallery, "Hands down it's the biggest crowd I've seen for a Thursday" (RENO GAZETTE-JOURNAL, 8/1). Golf Channel's Brian Hammons said, "It was a no-brainer for the tournament director to make that phone call (to invite Wie to the event). Look at that gallery that has gathered here on a Thursday to watch Michelle play” (“Legends Reno-Tahoe Open,” Golf Channel, 7/31).
DRAWING POWER: ESPN.com's Jason Sobel wrote, "Like it or not, Wie remains one of the few golfers who can still cause a ripple in the already overflowing wave pool that is professional sports. ... We've seen her grow up -- and disappoint -- right before our eyes." Everything Wie "has done in her short career ... has come under the watchful eye of a skeptical public. So, why should we stop watching now?" (ESPN.com, 7/30). In DC, Leonard Shapiro wrote there is "no question the LPGA has some telegenic rising stars, but Wie still has a chance to have a Tiger-like impact on that tour, in terms of attendance at the gate as well as eyeballs watching at home." Wie "pushes the ratings needle whenever she plays." Meanwhile, Wie potentially qualifying for the LPGA tour next year "couldn't come at a better time" -- six of the past eight LPGA events have been won by women from Korea or Taiwan, which is "hardly the sort of demographic American television officials get excited about" (WASHINGTONPOST.com, 7/31). SPORTSBUSINESS JOURNAL's Jon Show reports a special page on PGATour.com for this week's event "will contain blog-style coverage from a Web site staffer following Wie around the course." There also are plans to "have a photographer document her rounds and post video of exclusive post-round interviews" (SPORTSBUSINESS JOURNAL, 7/28 issue).
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Wie Giving Sponsors Exposure
By Competing In Men's Events |
MONEY TALKS: In California, Randy Youngman wrote the "real reason Wie continues to accept occasional sponsor's exemptions in men's events is for the exposure it gives to the companies with whom she has lucrative endorsement contracts." Wie has deals with Nike, Sony and Omega, and Youngman wrote, "If you were making $20[M] a year in endorsements, you'd do whatever you could to try to keep your sponsors happy, too -- even if it generated resentment among your peers." The PGA Tour is "not allowed to pay appearance fees, but Wie's sponsors certainly can pay her bonuses if she plays in men's events" (ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER, 7/30). However, Chicago Sun-Times columnist Jay Mariotti said of Wie's PGA Tour appearance this week, "This is a debacle now. She is becoming a punchline and her parents need to get a hold of this situation ... Those sponsorships and exemptions and her endorsements are going to shrivel up in a hurry because she cannot compete on that level" ("Around The Horn," ESPN, 7/30).
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