Wie's Controversies

Wie's Controversies

The 'Bumping' Incident

AP

At the 2003 U.S. Women's Open, Wie's father (and then-caddie) B.J. claimed that golfer Danielle Ammaccapane bumped Wie during the first round and also yelled at the then-13-year-old for a lack of course etiquette. B.J. eventually softened his stance while deciding to no longer carry his daughter's bag.

Playing In Men's Events

AP

Michelle hopes to improve her game by taking on the world's best players -- and that means the PGA Tour. Tournaments like the crowds she draws, but some pros consider it just a publicity stunt -- and Wie's inability to make a PGA Tour cut doesn't help her cause. "I don't think a 15-year-old girl who's done nothing at all should get a sponsor's invitation to a PGA Tour event," Mark Hensby said last year. "Michelle should be playing against girls her own age."

No Wins

AP

Wie has come close several times to winning an LPGA event, and is regularly near the leaderboard at women's majors. But she has yet to win a big event since bursting onto the scene, and her putting failures down the stretch are a glaring weakness. Sure, she's still young ... but patience may be starting to wear thin.

DQ In First Pro Start

AP

At last year's Samsung World Championship, Wie made her first start as a pro. But her coming-out party turned into a huge controversy as a result of a rules violation on a drop. Wie didn't call the penalty on herself; instead, it was pointed out a day later by SI writer Michael Bamberger, resulting in Wie's DQ.

Exhaustion at the Deere

AP

Sure, people were sympathetic when Michelle had to pull out of this year's John Deere Classic midway through the second round with heat exhaustion. Of course, she wouldn't have made the cut anyway (she was 8-over at the time). And not all were sad to see her go. Playing partner Jeff Gove criticized her slow play, saying, "She has to learn to play faster and be more respectful of other players and things of that nature. ... I know she's 16, but if she wants to play pro golf, she needs to learn how to act and what to do."

Firing The Caddie

AP

Blame the caddie -- that's nothing new in golf. But Wie seems to utilize that excuse quite a bit, having changed caddies a number of times in the last few years. The latest move came when she fired Greg Johnston following a poor performance at the Women's British Open. Wie suffered a two-shot penalty after failing to heed her caddie's advice. Of course, Tiger Woods changed caddies early in his career and it didn't seem to hurt him.

First Women's Rankings

Harry How/Getty Images

Wie didn't have anything to do with devising the Rolex Rankings, so you can't really blame her for this one. But the fact that she was No. 3 in the world when the initial rankings were released didn't sit well with some of her fellow golfers. Christie Kerr, who had five victories during the two-year time span leading up to the rankings, was No. 5.