Wish Come True

It can be dangerous making a wish and having the wish come true. When Michelle Wie left Hawaii to play in Phoenix, Carlsbad then Rancho Mirage, she wished she could stay home and go to the beach, hang out with friends and eat poke. After the ANA Inspiration, she left immediately the next day to Hawaii. She tweeted to her fans that she was going to the beach and relax. Like a lot of her LPGA friends, she was going to take a week off before playing the Lotte Championship which is on the same island as where she lives.

Michelle played a tough round and ended up at +8. The trade winds were blowing hard on first round and it affected ball flight. It was exceptionally difficult to stand over your ball and putt with any stability. Of all the players, Michelle would have been the best player to play in these conditions but the wind proved too hard for her to go low.

The second round started with a proposed cut line at +2. Michelle knew she would have to put in a solid round to stay around the weekend to contend. On the first tee, she hit out of bound and her score quickly inflated to +10. It looked impossible but Michelle tried hard. Her putts just wouldn’t drop.

By the 15th hole, it was clear that Michelle was going to have the weekend off. Her wish came true – to go to the beach, eat poke and relax. She missed the cut along with Natalie Gulbis, Cheyenne Woods, Allison Lee and others.

Coaching Inside the Ropes

Some LPGA players like Lydia Ko and Suzann Pettersen pay to have their golf coach/ instructor around with them at tournaments. Depending on the coach/ instructor, one or more of his students will share the cost of having them at the event to provide on-the-course instruction.

Lydia who is coached by David Leadbetter had him at the ANA Inspiration during practice rounds and the pro-am. He was on the driving range with her and he walked inside the ropes at pro-am. Luckily for Lydia’s pro-am partners, David provided private advice to them.

David is really pleased with his students who include Lydia Ko, Danielle Kang, Michelle Wie, Adam Scott and many others.

All-Star Lineup

Caitlyn Jenner’s team

When it was called the Kraft Nabisco, organizers invited celebrities who played golf to participate at the pro-am. That’s when I met Alice Cooper and Wayne Gretzky. Today it is called the ANA Inspiration and no celebrities were invited to the pro-am.

Careful examination of the pairing sheet heightened my curiosity. The first name was ‘C. Jenner’ and the other was ‘G. Fuhr’. You guessed it, Caitlyn Jenner was playing alongside LPGA pro, Danielle Kang and Grant Fuhr, ex-goaltender of the Edmonton Oilers was playing in the afternoon.

It turned out that Caitlyn’s pro-am team shot the lowest score. She was talking to David Leadbetter at the driving range and mentioned that her swing is coming around. She said she carries a single digit handicap. I was pleasantly surprised to see Caitlyn at a LPGA event and hope she makes it out next year.