RANCHO MIRAGE, Calif. -- The day must have felt like a trip back in time for Michelle Wie. It certainly did for me. I was here at Mission Hills Country Club in 2003 when Wie, then 13 years old, finished tied for ninth in what is now the ANA Inspiration and had a chance to win an LPGA major championship going to the final nine holes on Sunday.
On Thursday, in the first round of this year's ANA, Wie was the 27-year-old role model for Lucy Li, who qualified by winning the ANA Junior at the age of 14. Even though they barely interacted during their round and Li stood on the opposite side of the first tee box -- perhaps from nerves, perhaps because she was getting her game face on -- Li paid her homage to Wie by wearing her hair in the same double braid as her hero.
Li held her own against the intimidating presence of Wie, who at 6-foot-1 is a half-foot taller and nearly twice Li's age, shooting 1-under-par 71 to Wie's 68.
Play was suspended for the day shortly after 4 p.m. PT when wind gusts topped out at 64 mph. The first round will resume at 7:30 a.m. on Friday. Wie was currently tied for second, and Li was sitting in a tie for 24th.
"It was so much fun," Li, who qualified for the 2014 U.S. Women's Open at 11, said about playing with Wie. "She's super nice. And she hits it far!"
Wie averaged 295 yards off the tee on Thursday, 43 yards longer than Li, whose youth was marked by the "Lucy" ball marker clipped to her hat and the playful ribbons that wound through her hair.
"I drove the ball really well. I could have made a few more putts," Li said, singing a refrain sung by veteran players several times her age. Li hit more fairways than Wie -- 10 to six -- and they both used 28 putts.
Certainly, there is a lot Li can learn from Wie. No one who saw Wie play in 2003 would have guessed that 14 years later she would have only four LPGA victories, albeit one of those was the 2014 U.S. Women's Open. But that is the last tournament she has won. While four wins with a major is a good career for most players, more was expected of Wie.
But because of injuries, chronic putting woes and perhaps the decision to play against male pros at the age of 14 rather than learn how to win against girls her own age, the performance for Wie has never matched the potential. It will be interesting to see, as Li's career unfolds, what she has learned in that regard from the Wie experience. So far, she is taking it slowly.
As for Wie, there is still plenty to fatten her resume, and she has shown signs of a resurgence this year as demonstrated by her 68 here and a T-4 earlier this year at the HSBC Champions in Singapore.
David Leadbetter, Wie's longtime coach, says she's healthy and, more important, enjoying playing golf again. Despite physiotape on her left calf -- "I laughingly call her the walking cadaver," Leadbetter says -- Wie moved easily and seemed to swing freely. She was impressed in what she saw in Li.
"She's carries herself very well, extremely mature," Wie said about Li, using words similar to those that described her when she was a teen. "She played great."
As for her own game?
"I feel great," Wie said. "I'm having fun out there and I'm looking forward to more."
Among those following Wie and Li was Caryn Wilson who, along with the great Althea Gibson, played the U.S. Women's Open in both golf and tennis. Wilson, who played women's Open tennis in the 1980s and women's Open golf in 1999 and 2009, was also coach of the U.S. national tennis team on which Jennifer Capriati played. She knows a lot about the dangers of success at an early age.
Capriati reached the top 10 in the world ranking at the age of 14. Her career, however, was interrupted by arrests for shoplifting and possession of marijuana before she got it back together and returned as a major championship winner.
"My advice for young players is more advice for the parents," says Wilson. "Let them play. It all goes by so fast. If you enjoy it, it lasts longer."
Indeed, more than a few fans noticed the serious way in which Li attacked the golf course. "I feel like that little girl needs to have more fun," said a man in the gallery who noticed my media credential.
Still, the remarkable control displayed by Li of both her golf ball and of her emotions has the makings of a winner. Perhaps, as we near Sunday evening, another teenager will be making a run at a major championship in the California desert -- just like 14 years ago.