It was only fitting, after Michelle Wie sank a long birdie putt on the last hole to win the HSBC Women’s World Championship in Singapore, that she let loose with a celebration worthy of a Team USA victory.
Michelle Wie drains crazy long putt on 18 for first LPGA win since 2014
Wie breaks a long victory drought with a clutch 35-foot birdie putt on the 72nd hole in Singapore.
Photo by Andrew Redington/Getty Images
“‘That was a Solheim fist pump,’” Wie, who quoted last week’s LPGA Tour winner, Jessica Korda, said after drilling the 35-footer from the fringe for her first W since the 2014 U.S. Women’s Open and punching the air with her clenched right hand.
“I think that has to be the best putt of my career so far,” said Wie, who came from five strokes back to earn her fifth career tour title.
This win was a long time coming for Wie, who scored a flawless final-round 7-under 65 on Sunday to win by one shot over Jessica’s sister, Nelly Korda, Danielle Kang, Brooke Henderson, and Jenny Shin. Some 1,365 days, to be precise, since the LPGA’s most popular player hoisted a trophy, according to Ron Sirak.
If Wie, who attracts fans to the women’s game the way Tiger Woods does on the PGA Tour, can stay healthy, the 28-year-old Stanford grad could have a huge year (witness her hole-out for eagle on opening day at the Pure Silk-Bahamas LPGA Classic).
The former pre-teen phenom has battled a myriad of injuries and illnesses throughout her career, the familiar therapeutic tape covering her legs this week a reminder of such struggles.
“It’s been a tough journey since 2014. I think it’s been kind of well-documented,” Wie said following her come-from-behind victory on a day when she started five strokes back of Nelly Korda.
Wie acknowledged that having to endure the challenges to her health and a miserable 2016 season that included 12 missed cuts in 25 events sapped her spirit, which made Sunday’s triumph all the sweeter.
“I’m just really proud of myself for pulling myself out of it,” she said. “I felt like I had a good year last year, a year where I built confidence, and I just want to keep building confidence from there. I just want to keep rising. I just want to keep playing the best I can, trying the hardest I can and trying to become the best player that I can be.”
On Sunday, she certainly was the best player on the course, though making her way into the winner’s circle was hardly a gimme. Indeed, the putt at the last broke a four-way logjam at the top but not until Kang and Korda, playing with Henderson in the group behind Wie, missed their own birdie putts on the par-4 18th.
Wie was an improbable winner after carding a 73 in Friday’s second round. With her work on the greens the subject of much hand-wringing and debate (remember the tabletop?), she was able to leave the 33 putts she needed in that round behind her and finish with 26 and 25, respectively, on Saturday on Sunday.
While ending her victory drought was dramatic enough, Wie entered the week with retribution on her mind.
“I just wanted to get revenge after last year a little bit,” Wie said, referring to the 2017 HSBC tournament when she led for 54 holes but failed to close the deal. “I kind of came with a slight chip on my shoulder in the morning.”
About that Solheim-like glee, it was at her first team experience in 2009 when an exuberant Wie came into her own, winning matches, fans, and new friends among her teammates as she went undefeated (3-0-1) to help the Americans claim the cup.
”Solheim Cup means the world to me,” Wie told reporters back in 2013. “When I walk up on that first tee ... I’m representing my country, I’m representing my girls on my team, I’m representing playing for my captains, my co‑captains and everything it means to be American.”
With Wie the third U.S. player to win on tour this year, 2018 could be a big year for Americans — one Hawaii-born American in particular.
“That’s a pretty cool stat and I’m pretty proud to be part of it,” said Wie.
