SINGAPORE – Winning is everything for Michelle Wie and after she drained an astonishing birdie putt from off the green on the last hole of the HSBC Women's World Championship yesterday, it was a feeling the American could reacquaint herself with after a long wait.
The 28-year-old's last victory was at the 2014 US Open and after subsequent years battling injuries and technical changes, Wie had some unfinished business in Singapore after she led after three rounds a year ago but failed to seal the deal.
This year, she started her final round five strokes adrift of leader Nelly Korda, but chipped away at the deficit with six birdies over her first 17 holes until she completed her coup de grace with a shot that will be remembered for years.
Wie was entrenched in a four-way tie for the lead as she watched her approach shot land short of the green but just moments later, she was galloping towards the hole and pumping her fist as her ambitious 45-foot effort found the cup.
“Winning is everything. I mean, there is no better feeling than when you sink that winning putt. It's a high, for sure,” Wie, dressed in bright pink and with dyed-blonde locks, told reporters after signing for a seven-under 65 to complete a one-stroke victory on 17-under for the tournament.
Wie:There's no better feeling than when you sink that winning putt. Photo: Wallace Woon/EPA
“You go out there, and it's this feeling that gets you going. It's this feeling that makes you practise. It's that winning putt that makes you practise for hours and hours and hours, and even the hard times, it gets you going back.
“You know that good feeling is on the other side. It's just everything. Winning's everything.”
Wie thanked her parents, sponsors and fans for sticking by her in the almost four-year wait for a title victory, but saved her greatest appreciation for caddie Matt Holloway, who she said had played a key role in helping her stay focused in the chase.
“My caddie did a great job of keeping me in the game and keeping me entertained throughout the round. It was a lot of fun today,” she smiled.
“I just kind of wanted to get revenge after last year a little bit. I kind of came with a slight chip on my shoulder in the morning and I knew that I had to shoot low to even have a chance, and everyone played great today.
“Everyone was really clustered up there on the leaderboard. I'm just really proud of myself.”