Instead of making a series of long putts, Wie hit crisp irons that never strayed from the flag — a 3-iron stinger into the wind to 15 feet on No. 11, a 9-iron to 8 feet on the 12th, a soft 7-iron that hit 2 feet behind the flag on No. 14.

There were the usual assortment of mistakes, and Wie struggles to make par when she’s not in the fairway. What impressed her about Camilo Villegas, a dynamic rookie from Colombia, and big-hitting Chris Couch is how they could get into trouble off the tee and still make par or better.

That’s part of the learning curve.

“We’re never going to see what she’s really capable of until she plays a bunch of tournaments in a row — on different courses with different conditions — on a regular basis,” Leadbetter said.

Putting remains the one element of her game that is holding her back, although Wie looked sharp Friday except for falling asleep on a 30-inch par putt for the second straight round.

Thursday afternoon, she finished her putting practice by sticking eight sets of three tees around the hole about 6 feet away, removing one tee each time she made the putt. Then her mother, Bo, sat cross-legged behind the cup as her daughter rapped in one 3-footer after another.

Some believe Wie would have been better off playing junior tournaments and learning to win, or at least staying on the LPGA Tour and learning to win against the best women.

Leadbetter argues that Wie hasn’t given herself the best chance to win — at least not yet.

“She doesn’t play as many tournaments as other girls her age,” he said. “I guarantee there’s a lot of girls on the AJGA who play a heck of a lot more tournaments than Michelle does. But when you limit the number of tournaments you play, and you play the best men and women, your chances of winning are less.

“She can win with a half-set of clubs in her bag (on the AJGA). These girls are good, but this girl is special.”

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