LPGA Milks Michelle Wie, Kills Santa

And like a good neighbor, State Farm is....hey, where'd ya go???

Michelle Wie shot a 65 at the State Farm Classic Friday and for whatever reason- excitement over being tied for the lead, requests for various interviews, or just unaccustomed to actually making it through two days of a tournament- she walked outside of the scorer's tent without signing her scorecard. Fortunately, a volunteer noticed the oversight and called Wie back to the tent where she then signed her card, which was unmodified and correct. Problem solved, right? Well...not exactly.

If there's one thing that golfing bodies like more than keeping black folks out of their country clubs, it's creating and enforcing obscure minutiae within their rules. As such, the USGA was quick to pounce on Wie's stroll outside of the scorer's tent and disqualify her from the event for violation of rule 6-6b. Actually, "quick" isn't the best choice of words. Although the LPGA was intent on disqualifying Wie, they did allow her to play the entire 3rd round, since it was being aired on ESPN and she was the only ratings draw for the tournament. Once the round was completed, and ESPN was given the opportunity to air one final Michelle Wie montage, tournament director Sue Witters went forth with her decision to DQ Wie:

"I felt like I was telling somebody that there was no Santa Claus," Witters said.

...upon which a dozen 6 year old girls waiting for Wie's autograph fled in tears. For the record, when Santa stopped visiting me, the most I lost out on was a few action figures and maybe a jersey. Wie was vying for a quarter million dollars.

I realize it's not in the USGA/LPGA's nature to bend the rules or have any sense of reason, but I have to wonder why they are enforcing one rule while ignoring a far more fundamental violation in the same tournament. Now that Wie has been eliminated, the LPGA should focus on current leader Yani Tseng. For those unfamiliar with Tseng, here is a recent picture of the Taiwanese player:




That's a 16 year-old boy, right? C'mon Yani- even the laziest Taiwanese tranny waxes his lip before a night on the town. Why is the LPGA allowing him to play? Seems like arbitrary rule enforcement to me. Also, has Disney already made a movie about a boy who dresses up like a girl to win a golf tournament? If not, does anyone want to help me write a treatment? If we get one of the Jonas Brothers to star in it, we'll make a fortune!

It has to be disappointing for Wie not to have the opportunity to complete what might have been a milestone victory for her. There is at least one silver lining, however. By being disqualified, the LPGA saved her from a possible collapse on her final day, which is a nice change of pace for her. And even tho she didn't get the victory, she can always say she should have won if not for a stupid rule. And I do mean always. Heck, just take a lesson from Raiders fans- how many years has it been since the "tuck rule" and it's still all you hear from them. Well, other than "I plead not guilty, your honor."

Writing About Teen Athletes Isn't All Bad

So this week, many members of the mainstream media- Washington Post, Fox News, Chicago Tribune, etc.- took the opportunity to chastise sports blogs for putting a spotlight on Allison Stokke, a world class high school pole vaulter whose pictures of her looking sexy in competition were suddenly all over the internet. Of course the reality is, the only thing blogs did differently than conventional media was picking a sport- track and field- that doesn't usually get much coverage. Had Stokke been an elite tennis player (Sharapova/Kournikova) or golfer (Michelle Wie), then the major sports networks would have already consumed this high school player years ago, capitalizing on both her athletic ability and good looks to improve ratings. Regardless, this week many news outlets derided sports blogs as being nothing more than immature, lecherous, and disrespectful. Granted we may be all of those things, but to imply that we're nothing more than that is just irresponsible. There is much more to the internet community than that. For example:

Yesterday, I was watching the LPGA Ginn Tribute hosted by Annika to leer at 17 year-old Michelle Wie, when I noticed a 15 year-old who was much more compelling.

(Ok, this is off to a bad start. Let's try a more conventional approach.)

Avid golf fans may already know her name, but MacKinzie Kline is still a relative unknown on the LPGA tour. She may only be a 15 year-old amateur, but she has already made sports history. When the Ginn Tribute teed off yesterday, MacKinzie became the first LPGA player to be allowed to use a cart in competition. Born with a congenital birth defect in which her heart has only one ventrical and oxygenated blood flows poorly throughout her body, Kline tires easily. Along with her clubs, she must carry oxygen with her at all times in order to complete her round. Despite her physical limitations, she has excelled in the amateur ranks, and last year was the top ranked 14 year-old golfer in the world according to GolfWeek.

For the last five years, MacKinzie has been a national spokesperson for the Childrens Heart Foundation, an organization which funds research and raises awareness in the battle against congenital heart defects. Her goal is to raise one million dollars by the end of 2007 and she is currently three-fourths of the way there. She is hoping to secure a contribution from the Ginn Tribute (hosted by Annika Sorenstam, who herself is an ambassador for the Make-A-Wish Foundation and has already named that charity as one of the benefactors of the tournament). (The tournament also has a $2.6 million purse, so the golfers themselves have plenty to gain as well.)

MacKinzie Kline was noticeably nervous at the beginning of her round yesterday and had early struggles. By the end of the day, she found herself in last place, at +14. But Kline was able to accomplish something that Michelle Wie wasn't. She finished her round. In doing so, she showed everyone that she has the heart of a champion.

For more stories on MacKinzie Kline, check out:
USA Today
San Diego Union
MackinzieKline.com