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Michelle Wie

Michelle Wie finds release on golf course and in her art

Steve DiMeglio
USA TODAY Sports
"I'll always experiment," Michelle Wie says. "I'll always paint. I'll always try new things. I never want to be stuck in a mold. I have always searched for what would make me happy. And I'm not going to stop doing that."

PALM BEACH GARDENS, Fla. — Strolling through the corridors of the spacious art gallery that is Michelle Wie's life, one is moved to smile, laugh and, at times, wonder if the young lady needs a psychologist.

Having spent half her 25 years on a public stage, many of the images of the towering Hawaiian known as the Big Wiesy are familiar: the child prodigy who grew to play against men; the jaw-dropping power; the bubbly personality that leaves her smiling and giggling most of the time; and the unbroken spirit that eventually toppled the titanic burden of expectation when she hoisted the hardware at the 2014 U.S. Women's Open.

Away from the intense spotlight, however, and the clouds of criticism that clung to her for years, Wie found comfort in challenging norms and spending time alone with skulls, robots and women with big hair.

While golf remains her priority as the LPGA starts its 65th season Wednesday in the Coates Golf Championship in Ocala, Fla., and the course has been her sanctuary during the toughest of times, the world disappears when she picks up a paint brush and attacks a blank canvas.

The artist in Wie stretches her imagination and produces paintings such as a robot devouring a teddy bear, a man wearing a gas mask while holding a peace sign, a woman whose hair stretches to the sky and skulls that make you think she's been commissioned by the Sons of Anarchy.

"I have two hanging above my TV in the bedroom and my mom's like, 'Aren't those scary? How can you go to sleep?'" Wie tells USA TODAY Sports as she sits in the Carnoustie Room at the PGA National Resort & Spa talking about the art that nearly covers all of the wall space in her home in Jupiter. "I actually think the skull paintings are happy paintings.

" I don't know how to explain them. But they release some dark feelings in me, and to me, they make me happy."

But don't rush to judgment:

Wie seems perfectly sane and doesn't have deeply rooted demons waiting to surface and cause havoc.

Art is just one liberation that soothes her soul, for she also makes some of her own clothes — turning a $6 T-shirt into a stunning top, for instance — and has a flair in the kitchen with a taste for experimentation.

She's a speed reader with a degree in communications from Stanford and an abstract thinker who constantly scans horizons looking for unconventional ways to get from Point A to Point B. Whether she's painting, cooking, sewing or hitting a golf ball.

While it's logical to assume her most somber works came about when her game hit rock bottom and criticism of her parents being too hands-on reached its highest levels eight years ago, Wie explains she's just one who colors outside the lines.

With boundless energy and rarely constrained by boundaries, Wie refuses to live life painting by the numbers.

Simply, the art of Wie is her release.

"Life is a tough game. There is a struggle within everyone and there are happy emotions inside everyone, and I think it's important to have both of them and be in tune with both," says Wie, who has dabbled in different mediums such as watercolor and spray paint and always has a notepad at the ready when she feels the urge to sketch. "I've always lived my life trying new things. Try and play with the guys, try to make my own clothes, try this and try that. I love trying new foods, no matter how bizarre they are.

"Yeah, I had pink hair, so what? I am who I am. … I never wanted to be afraid to fail. I envision something and it might not come out the way I expected it to come out once I start painting. And that helps me know I'm not perfect."

Her search for perfection, ironically, is what led to some of her worst golf.

Always trying to hit perfect shots and then getting down on herself when she couldn't live up to that lofty standard often left her lost on the course.

"It's kind of like art; I envision what I want to happen, and 99% of the time it doesn't turn out the way you want," Wie says. "So you evolve with the painting, with the hole you are playing, with the life you are living."

Michelle Wie embraces the Harton S. Semple trophy after winning the U.S. Women's Open in 2014.

By all accounts, she's progressing just fine.

Despite injuries to her hands and wrists, 2014 was a two-win season for Wie and was by far her most consistent campaign.

Coupled with her envied ball-striking, her lampooned tabletop putting stance — where she bends at the waist until her back is parallel with the ground — spoke to her ingenuity and proved to be one of her strengths (she didn't three-putt once during her win in the U.S. Women's Open).

"Nowadays she's very peaceful," good friend and colleague Christina Kim says. "She's still goofy, but she is mature beyond her years. A lot of the crap that revolved around her all those years was tough to take but she dealt with it.

"She has everything — she's beautiful and ridiculously smart and super fun. She's multifaceted. She's like the tide — she just goes with the flow. But she is not satisfied. There's more out there in the world for her.

" … With her personality and her flair, she has the ability to be a world changer. She has a kind and caring heart for so many things."

Wie's revival the past several years has coincided with the LPGA tour's recovery.

The season opener, which has attracted 19 of the top 20 players in the world, including No. 1 Inbee Park, No. 2 teenage phenom Lydia Ko and No. 3 Stacy Lewis (the reigning player of the year), is the first of 33 events this season.

That's up from 23 in 2011. And nearly $20 million more in prize money is there for the taking.

Coming off a storybook year when stars won and the scope of worldwide talent continued to get deeper and younger, the LPGA is looking to ride the momentum into 2015.

"The level of play has risen so much. Every single year you have to work that much harder to keep your head above water," Wie says. "All those young players are hungry. It really is motivating. People are so consistent. You have to be on your "A" game every week."

Wie is No. 6 in the world but still the headliner. She's been a lightning rod for attention since she was in the seventh grade and qualified for her first women's professional event.

At 13, she won the Women's Amateur Public Links. At 14 she played in the Sony Open on the PGA Tour, where the Big Easy, Ernie Els, played a practice round with her and called her the Big Wiesy.

At 15 she nearly won three majors. Just before turning 16, she turned pro and signed lucrative deals with Sony and Nike.

She has four wins, including a major, but to critics, that falls far below what was expected of the girl wonder. But now that she's as comfortable as she's ever been with the spotlight and in her own skin, she's a week-in, week-out threat to find the winner's circle.

"Michelle moves the needle," Lewis says. "Her winning the Open on the biggest stage we have, we couldn't have asked for a better story. And the best thing is she silenced the critics, who have criticized all her decisions — her decision to turn pro, her decision to go to school, her decision to play against the men, all of it. And she's only 25. She still has a ton of great golf ahead of her."

The two are neighbors in south Florida and often hook up for practice rounds when the two are home.

"I like playing with players who are better than me," Lewis says. "When I play with Michelle I want to know how she hits her shots. We feed off each other. She's very creative, just like her art. She's creative in everything — the way she dresses, the way she carries herself, the way she plays golf.

"I've asked her about her art, all the skulls and all the black, and she can't explain it, but it certainly is creative."

As for the skulls, Wie says she's been infatuated with them since she was a kid. A walk in the dark through her home can stop anyone's heart because of the collection of skulls that spans the household.

"I've always been in love with skulls, but they aren't real ones," Wie laughs.

As for the black, it's her favorite color. In middle school, she went all Goth — walking around with her hair covering one eye, wearing black from head to toe, including her nail polish, and sporting studded belts. Marilyn Manson and Blink-182 made her pump up the volume.

Around this time, and out of necessity, Wie discovered her unique take on style could materialize by being creative with cloth.

"I started making jump suits because I couldn't find any tall enough," she says. "Or a maxi skirt because I couldn't find one long enough. Making my own clothes was just another thing I could try and be me."

Wie already is planning for her future, insisting she will go back to school to study business. Down the road, she says, she has her eye on being an entrepreneur, saying she's obsessed at the moment with Shark Tank.

Perhaps one day she will open her own gallery. Or restaurant. Or start a line of her own clothing. One thing is for sure — Wie won't change her ways.

"I'll always experiment," she says. "I'll always paint. I'll always try new things. I never want to be stuck in a mold. I have always searched for what would make me happy. And I'm not going to stop doing that."

Michelle Wie and some of her artwork. "I actually think the skull paintings are happy paintings. … I don't know how to explain them. But they release some dark feelings in me, and to me, they make me happy."
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