Tuesday

The Twin Trajectories of Michelle Wie & Britney Spears






What do pop star Britney Spears and golfer Michelle Wie have in common?

When that question was jokingly posed last year on humor sites and golf blogs, many chuckled smugly at the answer punchline:

"Both love sparkly accessories, can’t drive very well, and are riding a hot ascent to the top before they drop the ball".

Well, if either Michelle or Britney were at risk of dropping that metaphoric ball, both appear to have recovered it for now.

I always thought it facile and excessive to compare Michelle Wie to Britney Spears. However, at this particular juncture their trajectories do show similarities:

Britney Spears - the former child star and teen singing sensation is once again selling out concert venues and getting glowing reviews for her latest CD... while it shoots up the charts. This rebirth of the Britney brand comes after the world's most famous meltdown; a cataclysmic downward spiral that included substance abuse, arrests, rehab and a losing custody battle. Ms. Spears also shaved her head, gained weight and temporarily ceased to wear underpants... while sales of her CDs and merchandise declined.

Michelle Wie - the former child golfer and teen golf sensation recently finished well at Q-School and gained full playing status on the LPGA tour, declaring, “It feels like a clean slate, a new beginning, and I finally feel like I really earned it.” And no one's doubting she'll boost attendance at LPGA events in 2009. But as we all know, Michelle too had a meltdown of sorts, though it didn't include the dark demon of substance abuse. The golfer wasn't arrested, or sued or seen going commando either, and her only stint in rehab was for an injured wrist. The root of Michelle's meltdown was a temporary decline in her prodigiously peerless golf game...due to injury and overreach, and it temporarily cost her the respect of certain fans, peers and ...golf writers.

So though the stories really aren't very similar, the trajectories are. Imagine looking at the two careers on a line chart and I think you'll see what I mean. The happy part is that for both of these gorgeous, talented young women, the lines seem to be going in the right direction now.

18 comments:

  1. One's brunette and the other is blonde. How could there be any similarities??? I'm confused.

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  2. I think Michelle is a gorgeous girl with tremendous talent and potential. I know she's made mistakes, but I truly believe this is a new slate for her. I wish Britney all the luck, but I don't get the same vibe from her.

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  3. For sure. As Patricia said it's only the career trajectories that are similar, not as some bloggers (mainly guys)suggested, the girls themselves.

    Whether you like the Wie parents or not, (and they're not very popular that's for sure), at least it seems like they care about their daughter and each other. The Spears parents split as soon as their daughter became famous and seem to care only about themselves.

    Also Michelle graduated at the top of her high school class and go into Stanford. I don't even think Britney Spears graduated from high school or even elementary school.

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  4. Some of the guys definitely had a problem with MW playing the PGA events. They came down really hard on her for it. They better watch it though - from hearing her talk after she got her card I'm pretty sure that if she does well in LPGA this year she'll again be giving the men's events a try. ;)

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  5. On one hand - Spears' entire career has been based on trying to out sleeze Madonna. She is only proving that she is willing to do more distasteful things than Madonna in the name of fame. She has claimed that her kids are the most important things in her life - but as soon as she gets time with them, she is off on another drug, alcohol, and sex binge. Her new "music" is filled with hate for men - even though she is the one who toyed with the men in her life and jerked them around before trying to destroy herself.

    Michelle Wie - on the other hand - speaks horrible English and pretends to be a college student until she finds a way to play golf full time.

    Hmm - I'll take Wie.

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  6. oh - Wie didn't graduate at the top of her class. She got her diploma, but lied about graduation being the most important thing at the time - she skipped it to miss a cut in some men's event.

    She is a student at Stanford because she is a legacy. She turned her back on her "dream" of going to college and playing college golf in favor of a paycheck. The money she could have been worth if she had waited would be much greater than the millions she took to sell her amateur career.

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  7. Michelle Wie is 19. Doesn't anyone remember themselves at 19? How accomplished were you?

    BTW, Annika began her pro career at 23.

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  8. Ok, I just want to clear something up, I'm a guy and I think Michelle Wie is great. I loved that she wanted to play with the guys too. It added some spice. Too many guys get defensive when a women gets so called "special treatment" yet never complain that women routinely get less pay for the exact same work.

    I do wish women would buy drinks for men though, instead of the other way around ;)

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  9. I don't know - Bobbio - I've seen a lot of 19 year olds who have thrown away talent by taking short cuts. And turning tournaments where people are seriouly trying to earn their living into three ring circuses is not "adding spice" - it's a distraction to people who are trying to be serious about their careers.

    You wouldn't invite me on stage to jam because I know my bar chords and can remember three chord progressions.

    I hope she does well and manages to find that promise she had a few years ago - but the shortcuts she took have slowed her down.

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  10. Great hornets nest you supplanted in this story Patricia.

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  11. Michelle will do well in 2009 - and will eventually become a top 5 player.

    PS: I agree Patricia - I much prefer you blogging in your bikini :-)

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  12. Court, it's great that the men are seriously trying to earn their living and it's too bad it they get distracted but like all sporting events the mission of a public golf tournament is entertainment. That's why they sell tickets and rely on consumers to buy them. In the end Michelle Wie sold more tickets than the guys who were struggling to make their living. So I guess that's explanation.

    The tournament directors and sponsors aren't really supposed to subsidize anyone...that would be kind like socialism right.

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  13. "The tournament directors and sponsors aren't really supposed to subsidize anyone...that would be kind like socialism right."

    Actually, Anon - that is NOT socialism...or anything like it.

    The tournaments are money making ventures for the sponsors. They advertise in hopes of selling more product. The players are the draw to get people to see their products. They are not "subsidized".

    Yes - Michelle Wie sold some tickets - for Thursday and Friday. Not for days when most people come out - but that trend was fading as it became clear that she wasn't going to make a cut in a men's tournament. And when she started walking off the course during the second round, or DQ'ing herself in women's events, her star fell even faster.

    From Miram-Webster: Socialism -

    1: any of various economic and political theories advocating collective or governmental ownership and administration of the means of production and distribution of goods

    2 a: a system of society or group living in which there is no private property b: a system or condition of society in which the means of production are owned and controlled by the state

    3: a stage of society in Marxist theory transitional between capitalism and communism and distinguished by unequal distribution of goods and pay according to work done

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  14. I hope that both of these young women can turn their lives and careers around and succeed. They are under such intense scrutiny and pressure (Britney probably more than Michelle) and they need our support rather than criticism.

    Shalom

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  15. Lonewolf - just a question - I have no problem wishing Michelle Wie the best - I think she will mature well over the years.

    However - you say that Britney Spears "needs our support". How do you "support" someone who willingly chooses to flaunt herself and a sleezy lifestyle in front of very young children (and very gullible adults - many of whom are parents of these kids).

    With all the drug and sex related problems we have in this country, I have a very difficult time "supporting" people like Spears and Madonna and the like.

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  16. Ms. Wie is a lightning rod for controversy isn't she? It's interesting to see the varing responses.

    This article is very well written, by the way. I'm 68 years old and just beginning to explore the blog world. It's a surprise to me to find such high quality writing on a blog.

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  17. Other than the pictures, I really see no similarities between the two.

    I'm certainly glad I didn't have paparazzi following me around during my *screw-up* years.

    I think Michelle has at least shown tenacity . Brittany has merely shown her a$$. It's a difference in class. Michelle has it & Brittany doesn't.

    I think Michelle will grow into womanhood with the ease & grace of an athlete. Hopefully.

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