golfrewind.com

Thus far the only orange to orange comparison is shown below:

Tiger's 1st appearance on the PGA Tour (age 16): 72-75=147(+5), Cut

Michelle's 1st appearance on the PGA Tour (age 14): 72-68=140(E), Cut

Tiger's 2nd appearance on the PGA Tour: (age 17): 74-78=152 (+10), Cut

Michelle's 2nd appearance on the PGA Tour: (age 15): 75-74=149 (+9), Cut

Tiger's 3rd appearance on the PGA Tour: (age 17): 72-78=150 (+8), Cut

Tiger's 4th appearance on the PGA Tour: (age 17): 77-72=149 (+7), Cut

Tiger's 5th appearance on the PGA Tour: (age 18): 80-77=157 (+15), Cut

fortune telling aside, fact/result has Michelle six strokes to the good vs. Tiger, however inconsequential that is in the long run.

I very much agree with StlCard's analysis of 14 y/o girls vs. adult women compared with 15 y/o boys vs. adult men but it should also be said that 15 y/o boys would have a much better chance against adult men than 15 y/o girls would. So to me, since the PGA Tour itself does NOT restrict participation by sex, race, height, weight, etc., that is irrelevant. It's about the individual. Some may say that Michelle is a "freak" but I don't really think so. I have a daughter and three nieces who are over 6'.

for Card: LETS GO METS!!!!

Well I never maintained that Wie would become the next Tiger of the PGA, but could be his counterpart on the LPGA, if she chooses. I think a more appropriate comparison would be Michelle against the best women pros. She already had a 4th & a 13th in LPGA majors before she turned 15 as well as the 2nd last week. I don't have her complete record in front of me, but I believe she made all but 1 cut in the LPGA events she entered. IMO, she'd be top-5 material on the LPGA today if she could tour full-time. If her short game continues to improve she will dominate the LPGA within a few years, which is the route I hope she takes & I'm sure we'll continue to see her compete against the guys, though it would surprise me greatly if she ever became anything more than marginally competitive in a PGA event.

First of all, Tiger didn't even play against the pros at 15...and if you don't think my assertion that male vs. female maturation differences is very persuasive, think for a second about this: How many females have played (and fared well I might add) in LPGA tour events at age 15, 14, or even younger? Dozens, if not hundreds. Now, how many males have ever played a PGA Tour event at 15 or younger? ZERO! That should tell you right there that there must be some difference that keeps males from competing at that age....part of it is the overall talent in the pool of male pro golfers, but there's no way you'll ever convince me that some of it isn't a physiological difference at that age.

Also, what exactly has Michelle won? I know victory gave us the list of the Publinks and a few state amateur tourneys against little competition, but until she really wins something else, her ability to close out wins will be in doubt in my mind. I have no doubt that she's going to be a wonderful player, and maybe someday might dominate the LPGA Tour, but to state that based on a few decent finishes, she'd automatically be a top-5 player when subjected to the grind of the tour, or that she's going to pulverize the LPGA Tour in the way Tiger did on the PGA Tour early in his career is jumping the gun as far as I'm concerned.

Can't argue with that Waz. I'm not predicting that she become the next phenom of anything other than the LPGA Tour but I do think she could be a PGA Tour player, yes probably a marginal one, if she devotes herself to it. And in the have your cake and eating department, at the same time she could be dominating the LPGA majors.

Speaking of marginal, that pretty much describes a typical OG golf game. Just got back from waxing my Dad (83) by a good 20 strokes..... and it only cost me $10 in skins...... darn handicap! I'm of a mind to buy him a computer, teach him how to use it and have him to join Team OG. That tactic could be a slippery slope to embark upon though.

I expect Wie to improve and to have a stellar LPGA career. She's proven she can play she just hasn't won yet. Winning will come but I'm not ready to hand her "dominating" status just yet. There have been far too many "The Next Jack Nicklaus's" for me to fall into that crowd.

I find it laughable that so many want to grant Wie golf accomplishments (LPGA wins, LPGA Majors, competing on the PGA Tour, playing in the Masters etc.) that are extremely hard to obtain. She has the "gift" of golf talent, but lets not "gift" her these accomplishments. She still has to earn them and that will be much harder done, than said. :nodsmiley

Well when I granted you the difference in the maturation process between males & females you POUNCED ON IT to presume the logical extension of my position was that Wie's progress at 17 should equate to Tiger's at 21 so I took it back. The difference is probably more like 2 years, anyway and Michelle has said she's not going to play regularly on any tour until she graduates from high school, making any thought of her dominating anywhere by 17 far-fetched. Tiger missed his 1st 5 cuts on the PGA, by quite a bit at ages 16-18, if we can believe jimmigan's numbers... I do. As you mentioned the talent pool is much deeper in boys/men than in girls/women at all levels. I'd guess conservatively there is probably at least a 5-to-1 boy/girl ratio of scratch golfers in this country. This would seem to make it more likely that Wie may come to dominate the womens tour eventually, IMO. I think from a physical/skills standpoint it's inevitable....the jury's out on her mental strength and killer instinct. Now's the time to jump the gun ... there's plenty of room on the bandwagon.

That's great jimmigan.... if your going to get hustled, I can't think of a better person to do it than your dad. I wish mine were still around to do it to me.

Well, using that argument then, who could fault Tiger for not performing well in his few attempts at pro events (he did make the cut in 4 of 6 majors he played in as an amateur, one of the MCs an WD from Shinnecock with a wrist injury, and he did tie the amateur scoring record at the Open Championship, not exactly a small accomplishment) before he got out of college as well? If she's supposedly going to do it sooner than Tiger, then she should be dominating BEFORE she exits high school or college, whichever route she decides to go.

Playing against the pros and doing well as an amateur can foretell success on tour, but it doesn't mean they're automatically going to be stars. Scott Verplank won a PGA Tour event as an amateur, but he's done little more than be a slightly above average pro for his career. Wie has plenty of talent, but I'm not going to jump on the bandwagon and say she's going to do something really only two golfers in history (Jack and Tiger) have done, and that's dominate their respective tours from the moment they step out on tour as a pro, just yet. Her record is just not that overwhelming

Let's cut to the chase here.........until she wins, how can you compare her to anyone? You can compare talent all you want but it's results that make careers, not wishful thinking. Give it some time, let the girl play before you anoint her the next Golf God. Second place is a fine achievement, but legends aren't made on second place finishes.

Good Point, lets wait and see.

There have not been hundreds of 15 and younger females playing in tournaments. I know of exactly four...Morgan Pressel @ 14, Aree and Naree Song @ 14 and Michelle starting @ 12.

There are have been several young men who have played but I think the youngest was 15 when he qualified. He grandfather caddied for him and it was just within the last few years. Wish I had a better memory about that incident. Then there was Ty who played when he was 16.

Michelle won quite a few things when she played the amateurs. She has not taken that route, so saying that winning is the main criteria is nuts.

Maturity.....yes, girls mature faster than boys in that their bodies change enough that they are capable of having children and reach their maximum height at an earlier age. Beyond that, there is limited additional physical development...i.e., no muscle enhancement, bulking up, etc. unless for some reason a female goes in for weightlifting and even then there can never be the same amount of muscle development. The mental aspect of a 16-18 year old male surely must be as developed as a 12-15 year old female. Given the fact that there was also a longer period of playing the game of golf (more practice so to speak) one would generally think that Tiger would have a few years advantage of just grooving and being taught to swing a golf club. I would imagine that it would also have given him more time to develop in course management due to the extra playing time advantage.

I do not understand why on most discussion boards there are people who continue to take down the accomplishments of a 15 year old who is making strides that no one has done before. It was mentioned during the telecast by Dottie Pepper that amateurs are at a distinct disadvantage because they cannot gain enough tournament experience by only playing the seven exemptions they are entitled to and yet Michelle has done exceedingly well. It was also mentioned that the course they played this week is on the opposite side of the island from where Michelle lives and she had not played the course since she was 12 until the practice rounds on Monday, the same as the rest of the field.

We shall see when she is out of her natural surroundings. aka Hawaii.

Im going to keep mum due to the fact that everytime I make a prediction, the exact opposite happens. I will say that I do look forward to seeing her on the tour someday.

Actual PGA Tour "results" were all that were being compared in my "oranges to oranges" comparison. How can I do that? PGATour.com. Obviously Wie and Tiger will become uncomparable soon enough. The point of comparing her to Tiger at this point is to show that as a sponsor's exemption, she more than belongs. She's scored better than Woods and has garnered more $$ for PGA Tour players (increased purse) and their sponsors (increased revenue) than Tiger did at this stage.

Now is it wishful thinking to believe that Wie could become a lower level PGA Tour player (in ranking) if she devoted herself to it? Well, I'm not wishing that for her, just stating an opinion. And that's not granting or handing her anything. I'm not into affirmative action. I also think that any lower level PGA Tour player would dominate the LPGA Tour majors....

I am confident of one thing though. If Wie continues to perform just better than the teenage Tiger Woods did in her next few PGA-TOUR events, she'll be berated by many, even though she's be doing it at a younger age and under much more intense media/fan scrutiny.

Wow, she certainly has an impressive record!....
2nd place is pretty impressive.. beter than I thought she'd do at this age
Hopefully she does well on the LPGA and plays a few more events on the PGA!
Go the girls! uh yea