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RICOH WOMEN'S BRITISH OPEN

July 28, 2015

Michelle Wie West

TRUMP TURNBERRY, SCOTLAND

COLIN CALLANDER: We welcome Michelle Wie. You were out this morning, how was the course out there?
MICHELLE WIE: Yeah, it was actually great this morning. No wind. I kind of wish I was playing right now. The course is so awesome. Every time I get to hole 9, 10‑‑ I played 10 and 11 for the first time today, it's so beautiful. It's such an awesome golf course.
COLIN CALLANDER: You finished 11th at the recent U.S. Open even though you were struggling with injuries and you've not played since. How are the injuries now?
MICHELLE WIE: It's good. My Monday, or Sunday when I got out here, was the first time I really hit balls since then. So just kind of shaking off the rust, but it's been feeling pretty good, so I'm excited to play.

Q. Noticed when you walked in, a very strange piece of footwear. Could you share it with us?
MICHELLE WIE: Yeah, it's a new fashion. Yeah, it's just to doctor's orders. He wants me to be in the boot when I'm not playing just so I can rest it and make sure I'm ready for the next day. So it's more of a preventive thing.

Q. So it's preventative, as opposed to restorative, rather than a treatment?
MICHELLE WIE: It's kind of both.

Q. What is it, for those of us who did not see you walk in.
MICHELLE WIE: I have a bone spur in my foot so I'm just trying to get the inflammation down. I got a PRP injection in my foot. They wanted me to be in the boot so it could work and calm down and get the inflammation out. Trying to keep it as immobilised as I can.

Q. So is this a computerised boot?
MICHELLE WIE: Computerised?

Q. Does the information go from the boot‑‑
MICHELLE WIE: No. (Laughter).

Q. What would it mean to you to winin Scotland, the Home of Golf, surely St. Andrews, but the country; what would it mean to you to win in Scotland?
MICHELLE WIE: Oh, it would be awesome, just to be in the birth country of golf. It's always such a cool experience to play in St. Andrews. Turnberry is one of those places, we've seen the men play and there are so many historic memories from watching the men play here.
I was out practising with Leadbetter the other day and he showed me the place where Nick Price made an eagle on 17 from the back of the green and that was really cool.
It was always a bucket list place for me, and as soon as I found out they were playing here, I was always really excited, and I've been kind of like in awe the last couple days. The golf course is so beautiful. It's a tough golf course. But it's always so much fun to be over here playing links golf.

Q. Has Turnberry lived up to your expectations despite this appalling weather?
MICHELLE WIE: Yeah, I like it when it rains and when it blows over here. I don't think you guys do. But you don't really get to play this type of golf every week. So when you come over here and the weather is kind of like perfect and sunny and warm, you're like, oh, you know, makes things interesting.
Whatever happens the next couple days weather‑wise, I'm just going to go out there and think the best of it. And it's been great. Like I said, the views, the lighthouse views on a couple of those holes are just breathtaking.

Q. You said that playing in this is a novelty for you‑‑
MICHELLE WIE: Yeah‑‑ (laughter).

Q. Could you tell us exactly why you missed the last few tournaments? You've got the ankle problem but the hip issue, as well. What's the status?
MICHELLE WIE: The bursitis is still there. It was actually feeling really good coming into the Open. I think the golf course really pushed me back. But I got a cortisone shot in the hip joint this time in a different part of the hip. I got two injections in one day, so that was a fun day for me.
Really unfortunate that I had to pull out of Ohio and not play Michigan, but I just needed those two weeks just to let everything calm down. I just let everything settle back in. The hip is feeling a lot better. It's just something that I wish it was the off‑season and I had more time.
I never wanted to miss this tournament, so I'm here and I'm excited to play. We'll see once I get done with this week what the future plans are but I'm just going to take it day by day. My doctor said that I might feel better all of a sudden one day, waking up one morning, so I'm really hoping for that.

Q. You say you wouldn't want to miss here and it's a bucket list. If this was just a regular Tour event, would you not be playing?
MICHELLE WIE: Yeah, mm‑hmm.

Q. So how has your preparation been changed this week because of those injuries? Obviously you have not played much.
MICHELLE WIE: I really cut down on my practise. After the Pro‑Am today, I'm not practising at all. I'm trying to save myself and keep my foot immobilised when I'm not using it is really helping to keep the inflammation down.
There's a lot of things, elevating my leg when I can and trying to stay off my feet in general. Thankfully it being a links golf course being pretty flat‑‑ if I had to play Lancaster again, probably wouldn't happen. But I think the course is pretty flat and it's okay, and trying to stay in the fairways as much as I can helps, too, so try to do that.

Q. I know the Solheim Cup is really important to you. Do you think that you will take some time off again to make sure that you're okay to go for that? Those are long days and I don't even know if a double session is possible for you.
MICHELLE WIE: I'm just taking it day by day, like my doctor said, I could feel better all of a sudden. Just depends if the inflammation goes down and the PRP injection is working. Every day I do feel like my ankle is getting skinnier and skin questioner, which is great.
I definitely plan on playing a lot the rest of the year. I think it's going to get better and I have a really good game plan. Just trying to not make decisions too far in the future. Just trying to do day by day how I feel and trying to monitor it. Yeah, Solheim, I don't ever see myself not playing, so I'll be there.

Q. How many doctors do you have?
MICHELLE WIE: I have a lot of doctors now. But it's great. I mean, I went to the Cleveland Clinic in Mid‑Ohio and they have one of the best ankle doctors, hip doctors. Took a hand X‑ray just for the hell of it, too. I was like, why not. Also have my doctor in L.A. that has been there for all my angle sprains and I have a doctor in Florida, as well. First opinion, second opinion, third opinion‑‑ we are all on the same page which is really great. There's no risk (ph) if I play. It's not like I'm going to injure myself more for playing, which is great for my mind and piece of mind and whatnot. It's good. It's going well.

Q. Why do you think you are so injury‑prone?
MICHELLE WIE: No idea. No idea.

Q. No clues?
MICHELLE WIE: No clue. I mean, I don't want to go bungee‑jumping every day or do any extreme sports, so I don't know what happened.

Q. You seem to have been on Tour for an awful long time. I was almost a young man when you first came out on Tour. But you seem to have matured. Are you perhaps more comfortable than you were in the early days and to have the focus on people like Lydia, and you can fly under the radar a little bit?
MICHELLE WIE: Yeah, I think it's tough being a 13‑year‑old, 14‑year‑old; and to be a 13‑year‑old, 14‑year‑old in the media. I think I learned a lot about myself growing up in the spotlight. I definitely have my up‑and‑downs, which I learned from both.
Just kind of made me put everything in perspective, especially with health and everything. Being healthy is No. 1. It's not fun when you're not healthy. So just kind of putting that as my priority.
You know, it's a lot of fun. Definitely there are times when it isn't fun but these days, it's always a treat to be out on the golf course. I think a lot of times, you take golf for granted. I think that's what my recent injuries this past year, it just makes you really grateful when you're out here.
And especially being here at Turnberry, I think I'm just really excited to be here. I feel extremely grateful and thankful that I can play golf at the British Open. So I'm very happy.

Q. Have you actually seen Ailsa Craig or is it just from pictures?
MICHELLE WIE: Oh, yeah, that big rock thingy out there?

Q. Have you seen that big rock‑‑
MICHELLE WIE: I have, yeah‑‑ (Inaudible.)

Q. Obviously you went with the IOC to present golf as a sport to the IOC. How disappointed would you be if you then ended up not actually playing golf at the Olympics next year?
MICHELLE WIE: You know, I'm not thinking that way at all. I have a lot of time to qualify for the team. And you know, I'm working as hard as I can. That is definitely a big dream of mine. I'd be very honoured to play for the American Team. That's one of my biggest goals in life is to represent America in the Olympics.
I'm going to be very excited if I make the team.

Q. Have you ever met Donald Trump?
MICHELLE WIE: I have, yes.

Q. And what was your reaction to his letter that he wrote to Mike Whan, and also to the joint statement of the governing bodies distancing themselves from his statements?
MICHELLE WIE: I mean, I don't really want to get into that. I think it really distracts us from the great tournament that we have this week. I'm extremely honoured to be here at Turnberry. I think I made that very clear.
I think there's a lot of things that happen beyond our control, beyond what I can do or you can do. You know, I just think that what I can control this week is how I play and I'm just really excited to be here. Whatever happens out there, I'm just going to let them handle it and let them do their thing and I'm just going to focus on me doing my thing.

Q. Does it bring a sense of fun to it when there's another element away from the golf then?
MICHELLE WIE: Drama's always fun (laughing).

Q. With National Club Golf, we're doing an initiative called (inaudible) golf, the idea being to get lots of girls into golf. Are there any tips you would give us in the media to encourage girls to play golf?
MICHELLE WIE: I think just making it fun for them. Coming out here, you know you'll spend most of the time out in the sun and you're out with your friends playing golf. I think a lot of time, it's a pretty cool statistic that the LPGA has about when girls come to watch us play, I think the statistics of them starting to play golf kind of is much higher. So that's pretty cool.
Maybe if they come watch us play this week, they might find some encouragement or motivation or whatever. Just have fun, bring some friends, make it fun, play some games and all that.

Q. Do you think that there will be some mileage in perhaps making the holes a little bigger?
MICHELLE WIE: Yeah, definitely I think something like that has been spoken of before. I think that would be very interesting. I always thought that for amateur golfers, people just starting to play golf, start with bigger holes and work your way to championship holes. I think that would be a good idea.
COLIN CALLANDER: Thank you very much indeed.

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