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KPMG WOMEN'S PGA CHAMPIONSHIPJune 18, 2019Michelle Wie WestChaska, Minnesota THE MODERATOR: Ladies and gentlemen, we'd like to welcome you to the Media Center for the KPMG Women's PGA Championship. I'm Christina Lance with the LPGA. Happy to have you here this week and, most importantly, we're excited to well outcome back a familiar face, Michelle Wie. She's a five-time LPGA champion including the 2014 U.S. Women's U.S. Open. She competing in her 13th KPMG Women's Championship. Finished second as an amateur in 2005 and tied for 28th in 2018. Welcome back. It's good to have you back. We saw you a couple times earlier this year but you've been out rehabbing the hand and wrist injury. Tell us how you're feeling right now. MICHELLE WIE: I'm feeling hopeful. It's still a process that I'm going through. So, going to hopefully playing this week -- play this week and hopefully feel good and just been doing a lot, lot of rehab, you know, to try and get back as fast as I can and, you know, the doctors and I have been working together. It's been hard sitting out during the middle of the season. There's really nothing worse. But I had to take the time to get myself back to where I want to be. It still is a process. I'm not saying that it's completely perfect right now but it's something I'm working very hard everyday on. I see it getting better and better. THE MODERATOR: I saw you posted this morning some laser therapy on your hand and compression therapy on your legs. What are you doing in the rehab process since we've seen you last? MICHELLE WIE: You know, just a lot of things. You know, the first couple of weeks really to get the inflammation down, kind of re-aggravated it in Hawaii and pretty inflamed. Just doing everything I can to get the inflammation down. Also kind of working on different biomechanics and trying to make my swing more sound and trying to use different parts of my body so that it takes a load off of the hands. So, just been working on that and trying to figure out a way how I can swing and how I can move forward without aggravating it. THE MODERATOR: Hopefully we're in for a good week for you. The golf course here at Hazeltine, have you been here before? What's your familiarity with the course out here? MICHELLE WIE: I have not heard it. I heard Ryder Cups and U.S. Open. My fiancee was on the phone yesterday, this hole and this hole, watch all the Ryder Cup. I played 9 holes yesterday. It's in perfect condition. It's amazing. Seems like there was a lot of history here and very excited and honored that we're able to play this golf course. So very happy to be here. THE MODERATOR: Before we open it up for questions, you mentioned your fiancee. While you were rehabbing looked like a fun couple of weeks. What was all of that like around being around the NBA Finals and Playoffs. Saw you got to see some of your PGA friends up in Toronto as well. MICHELLE WIE: It's very difficult time for me, you know, being injured. Fortunately, I was able to spend some time with him and go and support him and the team and it was pretty inspiring to see actually a tough series, lot of injuries and lot of people playing while they're injured. I learned a lot from that, learned a lot, inspired by their tenacity and willingness to win and doing whatever it takes to be out there and that's actually what inspired me to be out here this week. It just -- the mindset and just a -- really everything about them. It's really inspiring to see. So, I'm really glad I was out there. THE MODERATOR: We'll open up for questions. Q. You have a very high threshold for pain and played through injuries before. Do you think you've become more patient in not coming back too soon? MICHELLE WIE: It doesn't get any easier. I think just the more times you do the same thing, you have a lot more people telling you that do not be stupid. If I had my choice, I would be playing all through this but lot of people in my ear telling me -- reminding me what has happened in the past. So, it's definitely been harder. It's hard to sit out but you got to listen to people that know what they're talking about. Q. When did you start hitting balls and practicing and how much can you practice now? MICHELLE WIE: I started hitting golf balls last week, you know, I like to jump in. Yeah, but -- the way the doctors and I have been talking about it, you know, unfortunately the U.S. Open, we were trying but a miracle needed to happen. It was just was too soon. For me to play this week, my doctors advised me to wait until the last possible moment to start hitting golf clubs, to give me some time. Unfortunately, these Majors are all really close together. I obviously would have liked this to be two months but, you know, things happen and I'm running on a schedule that's just not really ideal but the doctors, they gave me advice to wait until the last possible moment to pick up a golf club and that's kind of what I've been doing. Doing my rehab everyday and I'm just really, really grateful that I even have the opportunity to, you know, hit golf shots and to be here and to give myself a try. Q. Michelle, when you were talking about getting inspiration from some of the NBA players playing through injury, was there anyone in particular that you spoke to or anything that you heard that was especially inspiring? MICHELLE WIE: No, I didn't really speak to anyone in particular. I didn't want to bother them. Kind of important, the Playoffs. Just watching them. You know, I sat pretty close to the court and you just see a lot, what happens on the court and you just -- when you're there you really realize and when you're there behind the scenes you really notice a lot of small things and, you know, when Steph dislocated his finger and came back and taped his hand. You saw the picture of the finger going out in different directions and him coming back and fighting through and putting up all those shots. Klay tearing the ACL. Made both those free throws. It's really inspiring. You also notice that being an athlete you're not never going to be a hundred, you percent, always going to go through something and it was a confirmation to me being like it's okay, it's okay, that you're hurt, that's just part of being an athlete and you just have to go through it and find a way to compete. Q. Michelle, the swing change you're talking about, is that something you're looking to do permanently to take relief off your hand? Also having -- just started hitting balls last week, what are your expectations for this week? MICHELLE WIE: I hope it's permanent. You never know with me. We always say it's permanent. I think if I do what I'm doing properly, definitely it helps my wrist. I see that. So, that being said, I'm going to do my hardest to get that and make it comfortable and make it natural. But, yeah, it's something that my trainer, my physio, my coach, all agree that I need to do in order to keep playing. So that I'm for sure going to try to stick with it. Q. We spoke a lot about inspiration. This week's championship takes place under the backdrop of the KPMG Women's Leadership Summit. The theme is "Inspire Greatness". Can you talk a little bit about a woman in your life that's inspired you? MICHELLE WIE: Definitely my mom, the way she raised me and I hear all of her old dance stories and all that. I think her being an athlete as well has definitely helped to help to relate to me and to kind of guide me through that process. I think the KPMG Women's Summit is pretty incredible. Ms. Rice is here and Mia Hamm, two really, really, incredible inspirational women and to have that at the site of our golf tournament is pretty cool to do. I hope that a lot of young kids come out and watch and get inspired by all the amazing players that are out here this week. Yeah, I think it's a truly great event and what KPMG has done to make this term tournament bigger and PGA of America and stuff. We're all very grateful for them. It's an great opportunity for us to be at Hazeltine. Q. Two questions. You said you would have kept playing if it was up to you. I wonder if there was anyone that was in your ear telling you and maybe did you contemplate taking the rest of the year off at any point? Was that a discussion? MICHELLE WIE: Oh, yeah. I talked to the Tour about taking medical for the rest of the year. It's just my doctors are still saying even if I do take the rest of the year off it's not something that will get better just with time. So, just a matter of rehabbing. There obviously was a time period where I couldn't even think of hitting a golf balls. I couldn't really lift a golf club. But, you know, now that I'm getting healthier I think it's getting to a point where I can rehab through it and I can get myself, if I swing properly, train from that, I can get the load off of my hand and try to play pain-free as much as I can. But, yeah, I definitely -- I thought about it. I've talked to the Tour about it and contemplated long and hard but every bit of my body wants to play and it sucked, it sucked sitting out of the U.S. Open. I just didn't want to do it again and I'm here. I may be bull-headed and stubborn but it's just -- I'm happy being here. I missed my friends out here, I missed playing, I miss competing and I'm very excited to be here. Q. One follow-up. In general, when you're hitting golf shots, are you feeling pain or is it on just like the odd shot that you feel it? MICHELLE WIE: You know, it's a battle of inflammation for me. The thing when I'm practicing you're putting yourself on good lies and off tees. It's definitely when I don't do the right thing in my swing, if I get stuck in my back swing on the down swing. It happens randomly as well. Not every shot right now, which I'm very grateful for. But I just have to manage it. Q. Michelle, you were here at Interlachen and big brawny Hazeltine. What are the comparisons you see, none, right as far as Interlachen when you played here? MICHELLE WIE: I actually don't remember Interlachen at all. Did I play there? THE MODERATOR: I think you did. But it's been a while. MICHELLE WIE: Sorry. Okay. I have a really bad memory especially when it comes to golf courses. Sorry. Q. Michelle, when you started somewhat of a polar state, typically cold, Minnesota is nice. What preconceived notions did you have of this State and which ones have shown to be true and which ones have you debunked in your time here? MICHELLE WIE: I didn't have any prenotion thoughts. It's very cold here in the wintertime. It's so nice outside, I wonder how it is in the winter? But, nothing really. I haven't really -- I never really had a lot of prenotions about it. I know a couple people are from Minnesota and they always talked great things about it. Just a great State. I've had great food here this week so that's always a plus. Yeah, good golf courses and good people. THE MODERATOR: You definitely need to share the address of that ramen place. That was a great. Anything further for Michelle? One more in the back row. Q. Michelle, when did you first start experiencing like injuries, hand problems, and what effect do you think that has had on your career and also, going forward, as you head toward a milestone age, what's left for you that you really want to accomplish the most? MICHELLE WIE: You know, I've had a couple unfortunate falls, couple of accidents. You know, I was in a car accident two years ago which kind of created this whole thing. You know, it's been unfortunate accidents here and there. That's life. Things happen. You stumble across things that don't go your way, but there's still a lot of things I want to accomplish. I'm very proud of everything that I've accomplished so far. You know, I've accomplished two of my biggest dreams. I've graduated from Stanford and I won the U.S. Open. Those were two of my biggest dreams growing up. I'm very grateful that I was able to do that. Still so much more I want to accomplish and that's why I'm here, giving it my all and hopefully I can do that. THE MODERATOR: One final question in the middle. Q. You mentioned that you did play 9 holes yesterday. What was your impression of the course and how do you start putting, maybe, a game plan together for Thursday? MICHELLE WIE: Definitely was. Lives up to its name and reputation. A great golf course. I like how the holes are shaped and smaller greens on a couple of them. You know, the rough is up, it's patchy. There's some spots where it's really, really thick but, overall, I think the condition is great. It seemed like maybe it had a wet spring. I was expecting to be a little bit firmer. You can't control the weather. The golf course is in great shape. THE MODERATOR: Thank you so much, Michelle. She's off No. 10 at 9:19 with Minjee Lee and Lydia Ko. Great to have you back. FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports   |
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