If there's a will, there's a Wie

One bonus one gets while on a rest and reflective mode on holidays like Lent is time for mundane things one didn’t have much time for during work days.

On Black Saturday, we visited a bookstore to see what new stuff they had and what was on sale. After a few minutes of rummaging through the pile on sale at the entrance, one book immediately caught my attention. The title: “The Michelle Wie Way”, written by John Andrisani, author of the bestselling “The Tiger Woods Way”.

I thought the timing of the sale was rather perfect since the statuesque golfer had figured in a minor controversy during the KIA Classic last month that cost her the prince(ss)ly sum of US$90,000. It was another one of those sorry incidents that Wie found herself involved in. The fact that she has been criticized for a number of things like inappropriate attire and for having parents, B.J. and Bo, described as allegedly overbearing and acting every bit like stage managers, has not helped generate goodwill for the family.

At any rate, at first glance, one cannot help but take note of the cover, which has an attractive picture of the 20-year old, 6’1’’ golfing wonder completing a characteristically huge drive off the tee. The cover becomes even more compelling for many golfers who are obsessed with power off the tee, as the upper right hand corner has the brief blurb: “Inside Michell Wie’s Power-Swing Technique.” Andrisani refers to that obsession with the long drive as the “golfer’s egocentric need” which requires increased power.

Wie’s power drive however is not helpful from time to time. The fiasco in 11th hole at the KIA Classic, precisely validates that. Accounts of the two-stroke penalty incurred by Wie show that, on the last day of the tournament, the Hawiian-born American of Korean parentage, was just four strokes off the pace and in hot pursuit of the leader (and eventual winner) Hee Kyung Seo. An errant shot in the 11th went jabong (into the water) but was playable since it was in the water hazard’s shallow part. With her right foot immersed in water and her left foot planted on the grassy incline above the water, Wie hit the ball only for it to move a few inches onto the grass but out of the water. In what I thought (based on video clips) was an absent-minded, reflex act, Wie, after hitting the shot, let her club rest on the grass which is part of the hazard.

 A lot of what Andrisani says is really not new to the serious golfer. But how he relates it to Wie is still relevant: “The longer the golfer can drive the ball while keeping it relatively straight, the shorter the iron left to the green, which increases the player’s chances of hitting an approach shot within birdie range. Furthermore, in match play competitions, the player who hits powerful drives carries a huge psychological advantage over an opponent onto every tee, as Tiger Woods, John Daly and Michelle Wie have proven.”

Andrisani affirms that the golfing population’s fixation with the power game is the primary reason why Wie captures the imagination of galleries everywhere she plays. One key to Wie’s long hitting prowess is unquestionably the extremely large, wide arc that she is able to create and maintain, especially when swinging the driver. Obviously, her long arms along with the flexibility that comes with still being (in her early 20s) help her accomplish this technical link to producing powerful tee shots.

Andrisani adds that “it is certainly no coincidence that the top five golfers in the world (as of this writing) - Woods, Phil Mickelson, Vijay Singh, Retief Goosen and Ernie Els (6’4”)- are all well over six feet tall. Woods and Singh are also noted for their intense devotion to physical training and fitness.”

Andrisani however cautions that no matter how gifted an individual may be in terms of size, strength, suppleness and coordination, he or she is not likely to go far in (golf) without repeatedly setting up the ball correctly, a basic principle reiterated by David Leadbetter in his book, “The Golf Swing”.

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We lost a dear friend, Edison Coseteng, husband of the former Regina (Tita Reggie) Sy, in the early morning of Good Friday, April 2. Edison, together with brother, Emerson, established Mariwasa Manufacturing, one of the pioneers in the Philippine ceramic tile industry. Emerson would later put up the Mariwasa basketball team that would win several championships in the defunct MICAA. Reggie says Edison lived and died a simple man who quietly worked to help Philippine industry. The Cosetengs remain ardent supporters of what Ninoy and Cory Aquino stood and fought for.