Wie Falls Short in Masters Bid
June 25, 2004
Teenage golf star Michelle Wie shot a two-under par 142 on June 18 at the U.S. Men’s Public Amateur Links qualifying at Manada Golf Course in Hershey, Pa., falling just short in her quest to make it to the 2005 Masters.
The only female in the field, Hawai‘i’s Wie, 14, trailed David Bradshaw and Alex Knoll, who each shot four-under 140s and advanced to the 156-man July Publinx in Minnesota. Wie will be one of four alternates for the July tournament should Bradshaw or Knoll be unable to participate.
The Punahou School sophomore will now shift her focus to the 2004 U.S. Women’s Open, held July 1-4 in Massachusetts.
Had she been victorious, Wie would have been invited to the Minnesota event as one of two southeastern Pennsylvania representatives. The top 64 players from the Publinx will qualify for a match-play tournament and would have to win six matches to make it to the Masters. Wie said earlier that winning the July match-play tournament would have been her best hope of getting to Augusta.
Wie finished the morning round tied for fourth at one-under 71 and shot another 71 in the afternoon session to finish tied for third at 142. She missed two six-foot birdie attempts on the fifth and sixth holes in the afternoon, birdied the seventh after a second shot to within four feet of the pin, but failed to convert for two necessary birdies on the eighth and ninth holes to tie the leaders.
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