Annika Retires and Michelle Reemerges

Two noteworthy events took place recently in women’s golf---one far more important than the other.

Annika Sorenstam has retired from golf and Michelle Wie has earned her LPGA card.

The 38-year old woman ended her career with 90 international tournament wins, 78 LPGA victories, ten majors titles, eight Player of the Year awards and more than $20 million in winnings.

I have read that when Annika was on the junior golf tour, she would deliberately three-putt the 18th to avoid having to give a victory speech because she was terrified of public speaking.

At her last tournament in Dubai, she birdied the last hole of her professional golf career, and was applauded off the green by every player at the tournament.

"It means a lot," she told reporters. "When you get that kind of respect from players it breaks your heart."

"I felt at peace. I really felt very content," Sorenstam said after her final birdie. "I walked up to hit my third shot on the 18th, and I felt the breeze coming in, and it was just a really comfortable feeling. I saw my parents and my family and that give me a tear."

Annika Sorenstam increased the visibility of women athletes, and women's sports everywhere benefited. In 2001, she shot a 59, the lowest score in LPGA history. The following year, she won 11 titles and set an all-time LPGA low-scoring record.

After her round in Dubai on Sunday, Sorenstam said, "I'm both happy and sad. The motivation is no longer there but I'm very proud of what I've achieved in the last 15years. I feel very good about women's golf in general. It's on the rise and it will continue to grow."

The legacy of Annika Sorenstam will live on. She is a class act.

Meanwhile, there remains a fascination about the 19-year old from Hawaii. When Michelle Wie completed Q-school, there was a crowd of nearly 500 persons surrounding the 18th green. Typically, there are a handful of people to witness the final day of Q-school.

When she won the U.S. Women’s Amateur Public Links at 13 years old, it would have been hard to imagine her going six years without another trophy to call her own.

“I have a clean slate,” she said. “I took the long way to get here, but I feel really good about it.”

No other teenage girl came within three matches of qualifying for the Masters and nine holes of qualifying for the men’s U.S. Open. No other female showed enough potential to bring in $15 million in endorsements during her junior year in high school.

She said what brought her the most satisfaction about her LPGA card is that she earned it.

It was a big step for her go to Q-school just like so many great players before her—Annika Sorenstam, Karrie Webb, Se Ri Pak, all in the World Golf Hall of Fame.

Wie still hasn’t won a tournament since turning pro in 2005.

Her future?

She might be better than ever.

Or it could be that her best golf already is behind her.