No Longer A Teen Idle

Though Wie said she remains "fuzzy" on all the details of her injury, she finally did take about six weeks off from golf, at about the same time she also began her freshman year at Stanford. She lived in a dormitory on campus, got mostly A's and B's and said she had a fabulous experience and plans to return for her sophomore year this fall. She regained most of her health and is now "definitely on the road to recovery.

"I'm working on making it stronger, and it's really good," she said. "I don't really feel a lot of pain. . . . Actually, I'm really surprised at how good it is and I'm really pleased about it. If I hit it in the rough a lot and I hit a bad shot, I get a little twinge. But I just work it out a bit and it gets right back better a couple of hours later. It's pretty good."

That also would describe the state of her golf game, still what she described as "a work in progress" while at the same time insisting "I think I can win" this weekend at Interlachen Country Club, a classic 6,700-yard Donald Ross course -- the longest in U.S. Women's Open history -- in the Minneapolis suburbs.

Over the first nine holes of her final practice round Wednesday, Wie was in the rough off the tee on four holes, but also hit a booming 290-yard drive down the middle at the 438-yard fifth hole, the only time she took out her driver on the front side. Her long, flowing swing looked very much like the pre-2007 version, though she seemed slightly erratic with her long-iron play, sniping three straight shots dead right at the 178-yard No. 4.

Leadbetter said that he believes his 6-foot star pupil is on her way to regaining her old form and that he's been particularly encouraged by her recent play. That would include a sixth-place finish in a European women's event in Germany four weeks ago, second in a 36-hole Open qualifier two weeks ago at Woodmont and Manor in the Maryland suburbs and a 24th-place tie last week in the Wegmans LPGA event in Pittsford, N.Y., where she shot 69 in the final round.

"She's playing much better, making real strides," Leadbetter said. "It's obviously been a long haul back, and if anything, this may be a week or two early in the scheme of things to think about" winning this weekend.

Wie is still not a member of the LPGA Tour and is allowed to play only six tour events, not including majors, on sponsor's exemptions. She said she has no plans to go to qualifying school next fall because it conflicts with her Stanford classes, but will try to earn enough money in her remaining events to get into the top 80 on the LPGA Tour's money list. That would allow her to be fully exempt for the 2009 season. Last year, No. 80 on the list, Young Jo, earned $117,000; Wie has just more than $21,000 in prize money this season.

"I think I've come here with the mentality that I can play good enough to win this week," Wie said. "I'm feeling pretty confident about my game. I'm feeling like my tee shots are a lot better, I'm putting a lot better . . . everything is a lot better.

"I feel like I'm reemerging as a new player, a new person. I'm never, ever going to think about last year again. That was then and this is now. From now on, I'm only going to think about right now. I want to be as good a player as I can. I want to see how good I can get, how hard I can push, see how happy I can become and see what my full potential is."