Michelle wie west was retire. then

Michelle Wie West Waving Goodbye to Professional Golf Following U.S. Women’s Open

Photo Credit: USGA/Jeff Haynes

Written By: LPGA Communications @LPGA

While many saw it coming, it was still a shock to hear that five-time LPGA Tour winner Michelle Wie West will step away from professional golf following this week’s U.S. Women’s Open presented by ProMedica. The 2014 champion is understandably sad to be leaving the LPGA Tour, but Wie West is looking forward to the opportunities that are on the horizon and is excited to continue her work making golf more diverse and inclusive.

“It was kind of bittersweet always to announce that, but it's something that I've been thinking about for a while,” said Wie West, who joined the LPGA Tour in 2009. “Just to be back here where I won the U.S. Women's Open, obviously not the same golf course but the same area, it feels so amazing to come back and see all the fans and see all the players. It's been an amazing journey, and I'm very excited for what happens next.”

Wie West’s win eight years ago just up the road at Pinehurst No. 2 has been the crowning achievement of the 32-year-old’s career, and while she joked that she couldn’t pick the major venue out of a lineup, the Land of the Pines will always hold a special place in her heart. “I walked in Pinehurst Village this morning to get coffee. Funny enough, I don't remember anything about the week. It just looked like I walked for the first time. I didn't recognize it at all. I think I drove by Pinehurst No. 2 I'm like, ‘Oh, that's a cool golf course.’ They're like, ‘That's Pinehurst No. 2.’ I'm like, I don't remember that at all,” Wie West said with a big laugh. “I think I just blacked out that week. It means everything to me. It was the one tournament I wanted to win ever since I started playing golf. If I hadn't won the 2014 U.S. Open, I definitely wouldn't retire, and I would still be out here playing and chasing that win. That win means everything to me.”

Wie West doesn’t play much golf these days, an understandable change with young daughter Makenna at home, and 2022 has seen her play just once in an LPGA Tour event, a tie for 18th at the Hilton Grand Vacations Tournament of Champions. With that in mind, rather than focusing on the results, Wie West is more concerned about making the most of her swansong and wants to simply enjoy the walk at Pine Needles Lodge and Golf Club, savoring one of her last few events as an active LPGA Tour Member, taking the time to stop and smell the proverbial roses and bid a proper farewell to such a large part of her life.

“I'm definitely managing expectations right now. I haven't had the practice schedule that I usually do leading up to a U.S. Open. This week I'm just soaking it all in,” she said. “I have zero regrets in my career. There's always that inkling of wishing I had done more but I feel like no matter what, no one is ever going to be 100 percent satisfied. I have definitely had an up-and-down career, but I'm extremely proud for the resiliency that I've shown over my career. I'm extremely proud to have achieved the two biggest dreams that I've had, one being graduating from Stanford, and the other winning the U.S. Open. To check both those off the list means everything to me.”

• Michelle Wie West is set to step away from the LPGA Tour.
• Wie West is one of the most influential figures in the world of women's golf, bringing eyes to the sport as she excelled from a young age.
• While Wie West plans to take some time away from the LPGA Tour after this year's US Open, she did not rule out a comeback at some point later in life.

Michelle Wie West is set to step away from the LPGA Tour, at least for the time being.

Speaking with Beth Ann Nichols at USA Today, Wie West said that after next week's U.S. Women's Open at Pine Needles, she would not be competing on a regular basis.

Wie West will keep next year's Women's Open at Pebble Beach on her schedule, but aside from that, she is ready to move onto her next chapter.

Wie West, 32, has been a fixture in the golf world for two decades, having announced herself as a potentially generational player when she was just a 10-year-old amateur.

At 14, Wie West made waves when she was invited to play at the PGA Tour's 2004 Sony Open in Hawaii. Competing alongside a field of men's professionals, Wie West carded a 68 in the second round — the lowest score ever recorded by a woman at a PGA Tour event. Despite missing the cut by one stroke, Michelle Wie became a household name.

As a professional, Wie West didn't rack up trophy after trophy, as many expected, but she did win five events over her years on the LPGA Tour, including one major at the 2014 U.S. Women's Open.

Between that major win and earning her college degree at Stanford while competing, Wie West said she's leaving the sport having done what she had set out to do.

"Because I accomplished both of those, I think I feel very happy in my decision now," Wie West told USA Today. "I think if I hadn't won the U.S. Open, I'd still be out there competing week to week trying to get that U.S. Open win."

Now a mother to 1-year-old daughter Makenna, Wie West said that the grind of playing week after week at a high level was taking its toll.

"At times, if I do play a lot of golf," Wie West told USA Today, "I'm just in bed. Or I can't lift [my daughter] up, and that scared me."

While Wie West won't be a fixture on the LPGA Tour any longer, she'll still be working with one of her longtime sponsors, Nike, joining the likes of Serena Williams, WNBA star Sabrina Ionescu, and Olympic sprinter Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce on the Nike Athlete Think Tank, aimed at helping the brand empower the next generation of women athletes.

Despite her announcement, though, Wie West isn't declaring her leave of absence from golf a full-scale retirement just yet.

"I'm definitely not ruling anything out," Wie West said of potential future appearances on the LPGA Tour.

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