Michelle Wie receives special exemption to play 2007 Masters
April 1, Augusta, Georgia. Masters Chairman Billy Payne announced today that Michelle Wie will receive a special exemption to play in this year’s Masters. The announcement marks a dramatic changing of the guard. Last year, Payne, 58, replaced Hootie Johnson, who was 75 years old at the time.
Said Payne, “Today is an historic day for Augusta National. The Masters will have its first female golfer in the field. We couldn’t be prouder of the achievement, especially because it involves a golfer of the high caliber of Michelle Wie.”
Long-time critic of Augusta National’s all-male membership, Martha Burke remarked, “This is a step in the right direction, but it’s not equality. There should be female members. If you believe today’s ploy by Augusta National is good enough, you’d be a fool.”
Unfortunately, Michelle Wie is still nursing a wrist injury and may not be able to play this week. There was no official word from the Wie camp whether she’d be able to play, but well-known “family friend” and NBC commentator Mark Rolfing said, “Michelle is quite honored by the invitation and she’s doing her darndest to get her wrist in shape to play this week. If she’s not able to play, the Wie camp may ask to defer the invitation until 2008. At the very least, the invitation to play the Masters should put an end to all the naysayers of Michelle who have criticized her strategy to play with the men.”
Tweet