Did Michelle Wie Play Q-School?

How did Michelle Wie get her LPGA Tour membership? Did she play Q-School (the normal route) or was she granted or did she earn some special status?

While very little was normal about the path Wie took to the LPGA Tour, she did, in fact, do the normal thing and play Q-School. That is how she earned her LPGA Tour card and membership.

Wie entered LPGA Q-School in 2008 by sending in her entry form for one of two LPGA Sectional Qualifiers. She played in the sectional qualifier at Mission Hills Country Club in Palm Springs, Calif., Sept. 16-19, 2008. The top 30 and ties from that sectional advanced to the LPGA's Final Qualifying Tournament, and Wie finished tied for fourth place.

That advanced her to the final stage, and the 2008 Q-School final stage qualifier was played Dec. 3-7 at LPGA International in Daytona Beach, Fla.

At Q-School finals, Wie carded rounds of 69, 65, 72, 68 and 74 for a 12-under par total of 348. That was good for a tie for seventh place, and that was good enough to earn Wie fully exempt status on the 2009 LPGA Tour.