ASSOCIATED PRESS Michelle Wie threw out the first pitch before the start of yesterday's game between the Toronto Blue Jays and the Baltimore Orioles. She was in Maryland readying for the McDonald's LPGA Championship. See story, Sports.

Wie moves on to next tourney with eager spirit

HAVRE DE GRACE, Md. » Michelle Wie, 16, says she felt like an 80-year-old when she awoke yesterday morning, a day after a grueling 36-hole test in which she attempted to become the first woman to qualify for one of the four men's major championships.

"I couldn't move," she says, smiling. "I was like, oh, God, I feel so stiff. I'm a little bit sore. My energy level is up right now. I'm really feeling good. It's just I think I have to stretch a little bit more and eat well and I'll be fine."

Wie played 36 holes Monday in U.S. Open sectional qualifying round at Canoe Brook Country Club in Summit, N.J., falling short of earning one of the 18 available berths. She played well, tying for 59th in a field of 153, but it was a long day.

Wie does not believe Monday's marathon will have an adverse effect on her play in this week's LPGA Championship, beginning tomorrow.

"I felt like I rested really well yesterday (Monday). I mean last night," she says. "I slept really well. I'm just super excited for this week."

ASSOCIATED PRESS Hawaii's Michelle Wie, 16, wowed fans Monday at the U.S. Open sectional qualifying round in Summit, N.J.

She's certainly been knocking at the door, with five top-10 finishes in nine total majors, dating to 2003. What better place than at the LPGA Championship?

The tournament starts tomorrow at Bulle Rock Golf Course, a 2-iron away from where the Susquehanna River meets Chesapeake Bay.

Wie finished second to three-time defending champion Annika Sorenstam a year ago playing as an amateur, also on this course.

"I feel like I can go to the next step," she says. "I feel really good about my game. I want to try my hardest and play my hardest. Hopefully, I'll play good. But you never know."

This is the LPGA's second major of the year. Wie tied for third at the Kraft Nabisco Championship in March.

She will play the first two rounds with Dorothy Delasin of San Francisco and Scotland's Mhairi McKay. They play tomorrow afternoon and Friday morning.

Because she will be more familiar with the course this time around, Wie likely will benefit from a comfort factor.

And her game continues to evolve since her second-place finish in 2005.

"I feel I've become a more mature person out there," says Wie, who has never missed a cut in an LPGA major. "I can control myself better."

Wie thinks Monday's marathon might help her this week. Playing 18 holes a day instead of 36 on a wet course might make the LPGA Championship seem a bit easier.

"Walking 36 holes is a workout," she says, adding that Monday, with its attendant media circus, was challenging but a lot of fun.

This hypothetical question was posed to Wie: Would she rather have won Monday or reign as the winner of the LPGA Championship on Sunday?

She hesitated, noting it was a difficult choice, but then picked the LPGA event.

"Winning this week would be really awesome," she says.