Look out Chuck and Phil. NBA star Steph Curry trained with Michelle Wie West ahead of The Match: Champions for Change.
Before he returns to Chase Center for the Golden State Warriors preseason training camp, Stephen Curry will pick up his clubs for a star-studded round of golf.
On Friday, Curry will join legendary quarterback Peyton Manning, five-time golf major winner Phil Mickelson and NBA Hall of Famer Charles Barkley for the third edition of “The Match: Champions for Charity.” Proceeds from the charity competition will benefit Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs).
Curry will team up with Manning against Barkley and Mickelson. While linked with Tiger Woods in The Match II, Manning was part of the winner’s circle for the round.
To prepare for his round against Mickelson and Barkley tandem, Curry was working on his golf game with Michelle Wie West. Prior to the event, Wie West shared a video on Instagram featuring her and the two-time NBA Most Valuable Player teeing off. However, instead of using tees for their drives, Wie West and Curry used OXIGEN water bottles. Both Curry and Wie West are investors and partners with OXIGEN.
Via @michellewiewest on Instagram:
https://www.instagram.com/p/CHyNZdApNl5/
The veteran golfer has five LPGA Tour wins, including a U.S. Open championship from 2014. Wie West has also finished in the top five of LPGA Tour major golf events six times. Along with former Warrior Andre Iguodala and others, Wie West is slated to serve as an analyst for The Match.
Look out Chuck and Phil. NBA star Steph Curry trained with Michelle Wie West ahead of The Match: Champions for Change.
Before he returns to Chase Center for the Golden State Warriors preseason training camp, Stephen Curry will pick up his clubs for a star-studded round of golf.
On Friday, Curry will join legendary quarterback Peyton Manning, five-time golf major winner Phil Mickelson and NBA Hall of Famer Charles Barkley for the third edition of “The Match: Champions for Charity.” Proceeds from the charity competition will benefit Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs).
Curry will team up with Manning against Barkley and Mickelson. While linked with Tiger Woods in The Match II, Manning was part of the winner’s circle for the round.
To prepare for his round against Mickelson and Barkley tandem, Curry was working on his golf game with Michelle Wie West. Prior to the event, Wie West shared a video on Instagram featuring her and the two-time NBA Most Valuable Player teeing off. However, instead of using tees for their drives, Wie West and Curry used OXIGEN water bottles. Both Curry and Wie West are investors and partners with OXIGEN.
Via @michellewiewest on Instagram:
https://www.instagram.com/p/CHyNZdApNl5/
The veteran golfer has five LPGA Tour wins, including a U.S. Open championship from 2014. Wie West has also finished in the top five of LPGA Tour major golf events six times. Along with former Warrior Andre Iguodala and others, Wie West is slated to serve as an analyst for The Match.
Before he tees up for The Match III with Phil Mickelson, Charles Barkeley and Peyton Manning, Golden State Warriors point guard Stephen Curry is training with Michell Wie West.
Before he returns to Chase Center for the Golden State Warriors preseason training camp, Stephen Curry will pick up his clubs for a star-studded round of golf.
On Friday, Curry will join legendary quarterback Peyton Manning, five-time golf major winner Phil Mickelson and NBA Hall of Famer Charles Barkley for the third edition of “The Match: Champions for Charity.” Proceeds from the charity competition will benefit Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs).
Curry will team up with Manning against Barkley and Mickelson. While linked with Tiger Woods in The Match II, Manning was part of the winner’s circle for the round.
To prepare for his round against Mickelson and Barkley tandem, Curry has been working on his golf game with Michell Wie West. Prior to the event, Wie West shared a video on Instagram featuring her and the two-time NBA Most Valuable Player teeing off. However, instead of using tees for their drives, Wie West and Curry used OXIGEN water bottles. Both Curry and Wie West are investors and partners with OXIGEN.
The veteran golfer has five LPGA Tour wins, including a U.S. Open championship from 2014. Wie West has also finished in the top five of LPGA Tour major golf events six times. Along with former Warrior Andre Iguodala and others, Wie West is slated to serve as an analyst for The Match.
The Match III will begin at noon PST on Friday, Nov. 27, on TNT.
Longtime instructor David Leadbetter said he encouraged the 2014 champ to sign up so that she’d have a goal to practice toward.
Michelle Wie West has applied to play in the 75th U.S. Women’s Open. She posted on Instagram the custom-made shiny belt buckle the USGA sent as an entry gift, keeping with the Houston theme.
Longtime instructor David Leadbetter said he encouraged the 2014 champ to sign up so that she’d have a goal to practice toward. He figures there’s a 50 percent chance she plays.
Wie West’s parents are coming in from Hawaii in a couple weeks, freeing up more time for the new mom to practice. The U.S. Women’s Open will be held at Champions Golf Club Dec. 10-13, the penultimate event on the LPGA’s 2020 schedule.
“I just don’t know what Covid is going to look like,” Wie told Golfweek by phone. “I just don’t know if I feel comfortable traveling with her yet. In my mind I always thought by December it’s going to be safe to travel with her, but now … I’m not quite sure.”
A snapshot from Wie’s Instagram story.
Wie gave birth to Makenna Kamalei Yoona West on June 19 and was on the range hitting balls 10 days later. But don’t let that fool you. Golf hasn’t been much of a priority of late.
“No one tells you about the fourth trimester,” said Wie West. “It’s so hard. The nurses are doing everything for you and all of a sudden it’s like goodbye. What do you mean goodbye? It’s terrifying coming home.”
There was a phase, she said, when the longest stretch of sleep she got was 40 minutes. She’s grateful that Kenna has moved into the 12-hour sleep phase.
Wie West’s in-laws helped out for six weeks, and then her parents did the same. Since then the couple has been on their own, without a nanny.
It was a blessing in disguise, she said, that the Warriors had one of their worst seasons so that her husband could stay at home in their Bay Area bubble rather than the NBA’s bubble in Florida.
There are times when she sneaks away to play nine holes but spends most of the time looking at her phone, counting down the holes until she can return to Kenna.
That being said, a full return to competition remains the plan. In the meantime, she has kept her plate full since stepping away from the tour, from television broadcast work to new endeavors in the business world. Wie recently joined Steph Curry as an investor, partner and global face of Oxigen, a pH balanced water with electrolytes and boosted with oxygen.
Former tennis player Mardy Fish, a fellow Oxigen investor, plays golf with Jonnie and was one of several friends who introduced Wie to the product. Wie West said she had previously considered a hydration startup of her own with a friend from Stanford, but never had the time needed to see it through.
Staying hydrated has long been a personal issue she noted, pointing back to the time she got carted off on a stretcher at the John Deere Classic. Now, as a time-crunched mom, what she puts in her body and how she recovers has never been more important.
“I just don’t have a lot of free time,” said Wie West as she juggled calls around Kenna’s nap schedule. “If I wash my face once every day it’s a win.”
Wie West said she looks up to Curry as a role model for what he does off the court. As she branches out into different areas of interest while on maternity leave, Wie West said her mindset remains on training for her LPGA comeback. After the smoke cleared in San Francisco and she headed back out to the range, she sent Leadbetter a video of her swing.
“I said you better have a few more babies,” joked Leadbetter, “geez that looks really good.”
Leadbetter said they’ve worked to change the position of her hands on the club to minimize wrist cock and have switched to thicker grips. Wie West said she’s never been more aware of the health of her wrists than she is now, because it’s not just about being able to hit a golf ball – it’s about being able to lift and carry Kenna, too.
Wie West last competed on the LPGA June 2019 at the KPMG Women’s PGA Championship, taking a break first because of her wrists and then to have a baby. It would be strange, Leadbetter said, to make a return to golf for the first time in 18 months at a major, but he wouldn’t put it past her.
Kenna laughs a lot now. Wie West said she’s going through a screaming phase, posing as Mariah Carey when she hits the high octaves.
“It was really cute in the beginning,” she said, laughing.
If Wie West does decide to tee it up at Champions this winter, there won’t be any screaming or screeching from adoring fans. It would be a rather quiet return, actually, with no galleries.
But Kenna would be there, and that would be another dream come true.
2021 Solheim Cup captain, Pat Hurst, has selected Michelle Wie West to be an assistant captain for the event. Wie West, 30, recently gave birth to her first child, a daughter named Makenna, and has taken time off from competing on the LPGA Tour. Wie West has not competed in an LPGA event since the 2019 KPMG Women’s PGA Championship, where she missed the cut. Having competed in five previous Solheim Cups, she hopes to help other players feel comfortable in the event. She has helped the U.S. Team win in 2009, 2015, and 2017. Wie West joins Angela Stanford as an assistant captain on Hurst’s squad. The 2021 Solheim Cup will be contested Sept. 4-6 at Inverness Club in Toledo, Ohio.
2021 Solheim Cup captain, Pat Hurst, has selected Michelle Wie West to be an assistant captain for the event. Wie West, 30, recently gave birth to her first child, a daughter named Makenna, and has taken time off from competing on the LPGA Tour. Wie West has not competed in an LPGA event since the 2019 KPMG Women’s PGA Championship, where she missed the cut. Having competed in five previous Solheim Cups, she hopes to help other players feel comfortable in the event. She has helped the U.S. Team win in 2009, 2015, and 2017. Wie West joins Angela Stanford as an assistant captain on Hurst’s squad. The 2021 Solheim Cup will be contested Sept. 4-6 at Inverness Club in Toledo, Ohio.
New mom Michelle Wie West has been named an assistant captain for the 2021 U.S. Solheim Cup team.
Michelle Wie West didn’t sit around waiting for a call. When she heard that Pat Hurst was going to be the 2021 Solheim Cup captain, Wie West texted her “Pod Mom” saying that she’d love to be an assistant captain.
Hurst didn’t give the nod right away, but Wie West got her wish.
“All the players love her,” said Hurst. “They respect her, and that’s what I need.”
It doesn’t seem all that long ago that Wie West was a mystery to most. When she competed on her first Solheim Cup team in 2009, it marked the first time players got to know the former phenom away from an entourage. They discovered that the “kid” could hang. And her passion shone through in a rousing 3-0-1 Cup debut.
Juli Inkster was so impressed that she predicted a Wie West victory on the LPGA before the year was out. Wie West proved her correct in November at the Lorena Ochoa Invitational.
Morgan Pressel (left) and Michelle Wie share a laugh during a team photo shoot prior to the 2013 Solheim Cup at Colorado Golf Club.
“I won my first LPGA tournament after I played in the Solheim,” said Wie West on a media conference call, “and I don’t know if I hadn’t had that experience if that was going to happen that year.”
Wie West, 30, gave birth to daughter Makenna on June 19 and has posted several pictures with her on the range in recent weeks. The five-time LPGA winner confirmed that she still wants to continue playing on the LPGA, even in 2020 if possible, but her return mostly comes down to safety.
“It just depends really on the state of the world more than the state of my game at this point, unfortunately,” she said.
A silver lining to the pandemic break is that husband Jonnie West, an executive with the Golden State Warriors, will be mostly be her side through the end of the year.
“One positive thing that happened, there was a scenario where if (the Warriors) went to Orlando in the bubble and I was home by myself,” said Wie West, “I was quarantined, my parents couldn’t come, I could have been a single mother for a couple months all by myself, and that was a scary thought.”
Her parents, Bo and B.J., are in town now and Wie West took full advantage, recently playing 18 holes for the first time in a long time.
“I had to pump after nine holes,” she said, laughing.
Practice time on the range looks a bit different too these days. Wie West said she hits two balls and then goes over to check on McKenna before returning to hit two more.
The dream of hoisting hoisting a trophy on the 18th along with Makenna fuels Wie West to keep competing. She wants what Tiger Woods enjoyed at Augusta National last year.
That being said, she’s now more impressed than ever by what LPGA moms who have come before her have accomplished, notably Suzann Pettersen at last year’s Solheim Cup in Scotland and Catriona Matthew winning the Women’s British Open 11 weeks after giving birth to her second daughter. Wie West marveled at the idea, noting that she’s barely hitting driver 220 yards now.
For two Solheim Cups, Wie West was in Hurst’s player pod and greatly benefited from her nurturing approach. Wie West hopes that she can help other players feel comfortable too, given that she’s likely experienced every emotion there is in her five Solheim Cup appearances.
Wie West joins Angela Stanford as an assistant on Hurst’s squad. The 2021 Solheim Cup will be contested Sept. 4-6 at Inverness Club in Toledo, Ohio. Next week the LPGA restarts its season at Inverness at the new Drive On Championship where prominent Americans Nelly Korda, Danielle Kang, Lexi Thompson, Jessica Korda and Stanford are among those in the field. Hurst won’t be onsite for the competition, however, as it’s closed to spectators.
Michelle Wie West gave birth to her first child during a pandemic and then hit the driving range 10 days later.
Ten days after Michelle Wie West gave birth to Makenna Kamalei Yoona West, she was back on the range at Stanford hitting balls. Baby Kenna was on the range right behind her in a stroller, enjoying the view.
One day, Kenna will learn about how mom’s powerful swing captured the golf world’s attention and catapulted her into immediate fame.
For now, mom is sticking to pitch shots, easing her way back into the swing of things far earlier than most expected.
“Where did you even have a baby?” Cristie Kerr wrote on Wie West’s Instagram post, marveling at her slim physique.
Tiffany Joh, one of the LPGA’s great jokesters, kidded Wie West with “Omg GO HOME YOU OVERACHIEVER.”
Wie West, 30, married Jonnie West, son of basketball legend Jerry West and an executive with the Golden State Warriors, last August in Beverly Hills, California. She last competed at the 2019 KPMG Women’s PGA Championship, first taking a long break to get healthy and then extending that break for maternity leave.
Watching Wie West head back to the range so early after giving birth brings up the obvious question: When will she return?
Michelle Wie West hit the driving range at Stanford 10 days after giving birth to daughter Makenna. (@MichelleWieWest/ Instagram)
The LPGA star told Golfweek in May that she’d consider the back half of the LPGA schedule – which includes the U.S. Women’s Open in December – but only if there’s a coronavirus vaccine available, given that she’d be traveling with a young baby.
With news of the NBC/Golf Channel taking over the USGA’s media rights earlier this week, it’s possible that Wie will be working the 75th U.S. Women’s Open from behind the booth if she’s not competing. She worked “Golf Central Live From the Players” as an analyst in March before the tournament was canceled.
Michelle Wie, the 2014 U.S. Women’s Open champion, announced on Instagram that she gave birth to her first child on Friday.
Michelle Wie West delivered quite the early Father’s Day present for husband, Jonnie West. She gave birth to the couple’s first child on Friday, a baby girl that they named Makenna.
Wie West, 30, was married to West, the son of basketball legend Jerry West and an executive with the Golden State Warriors, in August, in Beverly Hills, California.
Wie West posted two photos from the hospital to her Instagram account with the following message:
“Kenna baby, I have waited my entire life to meet you. Makenna Kamalei Yoona West, your daddy and I love you more than any words can describe. You are our entire 🌎 we can’t wait to watch you grow. ❤️ 6/19/20 ❤️,” the 2014 U.S. Women’s Open champion wrote.
Wie West had been sidelined due to injury and hasn’t played on the LPGA Tour since withdrawing from the 2019 KPMG Women’s PGA in June. She recently began commentating for Golf Channel and appeared on the “Live From” set at the Players Championship before the tournament was canceled due to COVID-19.
Michelle Wie West’s girl tribe planned to throw her a baby shower in San Francisco on Monday. But with the LPGA Mediheal Championship canceled due to the coronavirus, friends Jeehae Lee, Kira Dixon and Nickole Raymond Tara are putting on a Zoom baby …
Michelle Wie West’s girl tribe planned to throw her a baby shower in San Francisco on Monday. But with the LPGA Mediheal Championship canceled due to the coronavirus, friends Jeehae Lee, Kira Dixon and Nickole Raymond Tara are putting on a Zoom baby shower instead. Wie joked that she’s grateful this lockdown isn’t happening during the old Nokia phone phase.
“I definitely didn’t see myself being pregnant during a pandemic,” said Wie West, “but here we are.”
Wie West and husband Jonnie, an executive with the Golden State Warriors, are expecting their first child, a girl, later this summer. Given San Francisco’s strict shelter-in-place orders, the 30-year-old’s doctor appointments have been taking place virtually as she’s not in a high-risk category.
Now that she’s in her third trimester, however, Wie West said she’ll be physically going for checkups every two weeks. Being pregnant during a global pandemic brings an unexpected layer of stress.
“At first there was no news on pregnant women getting (COVID-19) or pregnant women transferring the virus through the placenta to the kid,” she said. “But now that there are reports that it causes pre-term labor, newborns can get it, babies in the womb can get it — it’s extremely nerve-wracking for sure. We’ve been extremely careful.”
Even the couple’s birthing classes have moved online.
There was a time when the LPGA star thought she might be able to compete while pregnant. Even without the coronavirus halting play, however, that likely wouldn’t have happened. The five-time LPGA winner said she can only hit three-quarter shots these days, and stringing together four rounds while walking proved an impossible task.
“I would’ve loved the chance,” she said. “Maybe for a future baby we can rethink it. But I think with this being my first one, I was extremely anxious to not do anything to put myself in extreme stress – glad that I can stay at home and put my feet up.”
Wie West can’t wait to see what her baby looks like. She daydreams about watching her grow. Fear creeps in, too. She has a recurring nightmare in which she forgets to feed the baby, waking up in a cold sweat.
“I think being responsible for another life is scary,” she said. “I can’t believe they’re going to let us leave the hospital with her.”
While nesting at home, watermelon and fruit have been the mainstays of her pregnancy diet. She’s trying to keep up with her workouts. When restaurants are back open and she’s no longer carrying a baby, she’ll be the first in line for sushi.
“And wine,” she said. “Maybe a dash of tequila. And coffee.”
In addition to her work with Golf Channel while on maternity leave, Wie West has taped several programs around her second great passion – food.
Last month the Food Network aired a show that pitted Buddy Valastro against Duff Goldman in a mini-golf competition featuring elaborate cakes as course obstacles. Wie West hosted the cake party when she was 12 weeks pregnant.
“I don’t think the screen really portrayed how amazing the cakes were in person,” she said. “It was insane when they unveiled it.”
She was asked to slice a cake for the production staff when it was over, and in her rush to get back home, took only one slice.
“That cake has haunted me ever since,” she said. “It was the best cake I’ve ever had.”
Last week, Valastro sent an entire cake to her home to stop the craving.
Wie West has reveled in her screen time as TV analyst and host, whether talking about golf or food, and has big plans for the future.
On Easter Sunday, she hosted an Instagram Live Q&A with fellow Nike athletes Brooks Koepka, Rory McIlroy, Paul Casey and Jason Day.
What’s it like being on the other side of the Q&A?
“Oh, it was way easier asking the questions,” she said. It helped, of course, that they’re friends.
But she’s not done with golf. Swing coach David Leadbetter has seen the occasional video of Wie practicing while pregnant and said that as her lower body has slowed down, the rhythm of her swing has noticeably improved.
With the LPGA’s revised schedule being pushed back to nearly Christmas, it’s possible that Wie West could still come back in 2020, particularly with the U.S. Women’s Open being held in mid-December.
If the world wasn’t dealing with an unknown deadly virus, the 2014 Women’s Open champ said she’d be taking a serious look at the back end of the schedule. But right now, much of what lies ahead is beyond her control.
“For me, I feel like there would have to be a vaccine or something of some sort,” she said, “because at that point I would be traveling with a really young baby.”
The extended break of maternity leave certainly helps the lingering wrist issues that caused her to take a break from the game for most of 2019. Leadbetter doesn’t doubt for a second that Wie West will return to competition and thinks a new perspective on life could lead to a resurgence in her game.
“So much of her happiness was based on the way that she played,” he said. “That’s definitely not going to be the case now.”
Several pro golfers will compete on Thursday in the MGM Resorts’ Employee Emergency Grant Fund for those impacted by COVID-19.
Some of golf’s biggest names will be “Chipping All-In” on Thursday in a live virtual poker tournament for a good cause.
Michelle Wie West, John Daly, Jimmy Walker, Harold Varner III, Brittany Lincicome, Collin Morikawa, Cristie Kerr, Lydia Ko and Kevin Na are among the list of golfers scheduled to compete to aid the MGM Resorts’ Employee Emergency Grant Fund for the company’s employees and community partners impacted by COVID-19.
The action starts at 3 p.m. ET on Thursday with proceeds aimed at providing: “employees and their immediate families with short-term relief in making payments or to meet obligations during unexpected hardships and emergencies. The fund is designed to assist those impacted by the coronavirus, including full-time employees, on-call employees and those facing layoff, separation or furlough.”
The World Poker Tour and Loaded are also in on the action, and the interactive Chipping All-In event will be shown on Twitch and Youtube. Viewers will be able to make real-time donations, with participants giving personal shout-outs to those who donate.
The interactive experience will also feature live audio throughout and a live Q&A will allow fans a chance to engage with the players.
Players and Golf Channel personalities scheduled to participate:
Aaron Wise
Alex Kang
Alison Lee
Anna Nordqvist
Ben Taylor
Brittany Lincicome
Butch Harmon
Cheyenne Woods
Chris Como
Collin Morikawa
Cristie Kerr
Danielle Kang
David Lipsky
Doug Ghim
Gaby Lopez
George Savaricas
Graham DeLaet
Harold Varner III
Jamie Lovemark
Jason Kokrak
Jimmy Walker
Joel Dahmen
John Daly
Juli Inkster
Kelley James
Kevin Na
Kurt Kitayama
Lydia Ko
Matt Ginella
Maverick McNealy
Max Homa
Michelle Wie
Natalie Gulbis
Pat Perez
Sam Burns
Tommy Armour III
Wyndham Clark
