01:00 AM EDT on Wednesday, June 28, 2006

BY PAUL KENYON
Journal Sports Writer

NEWPORT -- She's a paradox, this Michelle Wie.

She is rapidly becoming more than a golfer. She is a prodigy. She is rapidly emerging as a true celebrity in the Hollywood sense.

Yet, she still is only 16 years old. There are times, quite a few times, when she acts giddy, such as when she speaks about how she wishes her high school would change its dress code. She giggles when she speaks about how, now that she is a professional (she declared herself a pro last fall), "I have a bigger golf bag and I get more goodies from Sony and Nike. It's a lot of fun." Like so many teenagers, she mixes a lot of "you knows" into her speech.

But at other times, she sounds like someone far beyond her years. She speaks about wanting to use her talents and fame to impact the world.

The day she turned pro, complete with signing contracts with Nike and Sony worth a reported $10 million, she announced that she was donating $500,000 to the Hurricane Katrina Relief Fund. She speaks about how she wants to make donating to children's hospitals one of her priorities.

'What motivates me?" she responded to a question. "I think, you know, because I want to win, that's what motivates me to practice. But also it's what I can do with my ability, how I can help others. That sounds really clichéish, but it's kind of true . . . I just want to use my good golf to make a better world, to have positive influences on other people's lives, like using my sponsors to help me donate money and help people less fortunate than me."

It's one thing to say something like that. But Wie, like Tiger Woods before her, is in position to do just that.

She is taking a path no athlete has ever trod before, which is part of the fascination about her. Instead of playing against women and juniors, she has regularly competed against men, with some success. The 6-footer hits the ball farther than a number of PGA Tour players.

Just as Woods was emerging as a superstar when he came to Newport in 1995 and won the U.S. Amateur, Wie is going through the same process.

Some have criticized her for what she is doing, noting that she has been in position to win all three LPGA events in which she has competed this year, but has been unable to close the deal in any of them and has finished third, tied for third and fifth. In last year's Women's Open, when she still was an amateur, she was tied for the lead entering the final round, collapsed to an 82 and tied for 23rd.

Critics have said that's proof she needs to learn to win by competing against players more her own age, that she should focus on competing against women and not make the sojourns such as trying to qualify for the U.S. Men's Open or playing in a men's Asian Tour event.

Critics or not, Wie indicates she is going to stick with her plan. She has no intention of competing full time on the LPGA Tour when she turns 18. Wie, who still has another year of high school, speaks about wanting to attend Stanford or another college on the West Coast.

It is full speed ahead as far as continuing on the uncharted road she is following on the golf course.

"I'm a freelancer," is the way she describes it. "It almost reminds me of a newspaper, where you have staff writers and then you also have your freelance writers. I'm the freelance writer."

"I love this freelancing. I'm playing on a lot of Tours. I'm playing the Japanese Tour, Asian Tour, the PGA, the LPGA, it's awesome." If there is one goal, it is one day to compete against the men regularly, including qualifying for The Masters.

"Obviously, I would like to play in the PGA later on, be a member there. And then if I can be a member of the LPGA, too. I don't like being stuck in one place. I love moving around and playing different areas, playing different countries, playing the European Tour, playing in Asia. It's just so much fun. I have the opportunity to do it, so I might as well do it. I enjoy it, I really do."

She goes back into her teenager mode when she is asked where Newport fits into everything she's done.

"The golf course is awesome. The clubhouse is beautiful. I don't feel like I'm in America. The golf course is totally links style," she said. "All the houses are so huge. It's just so . . . I've never been in a place like this before and I love it."

Her situation with the LPGA is a bit touchy, not unlike when Woods was bursting on the scene. Some resentment is natural because Wie gets so much attention and because she has spoken about wanting to do more than simply compete with the other women. But those who can see the big picture know that Wie only is going to increase the visibility of the women's game, and with the added spotlight bring more money for everybody.

Wie, who is from Honolulu, realizes there are critics.

"I know that outside my family, outside my friends, there are people that don't support me and people that support me," she said. "But my family supports me. My friends support me, and my trainer, David Leadbetter (her swing coach), supports me 100 percent, and that's what is the most important thing for me."

She's going to do it her way. Never mind that it's a different road than any athlete has ever traveled before.

pkenyon@projo.com / (401) 277-7340