The former child prodigy had a courtside seat
during the series between the Golden State Warriors and
victorious Toronto Raptors, from where she saw that basketball
can be a violent sport.
"You just see a lot, and when you're there behind the scenes you
really notice a lot of small things," said Hawaii-born Wie, who
is engaged to Jonnie West, the director of basketball operations
for the Warriors.
"Steph (Curry) dislocated his finger and came back and taped his
hand. You saw the picture of the finger going out in different
directions and him coming back and fighting through and putting
up all those shots.
"You also notice that being an athlete you're not never going to
be a hundred percent, always going to go through something and
it was a confirmation to me it's okay that you're hurt ... you
just have to go through it and find a way to compete."
And compete she will at the third women's major of the year,
starting at Hazeltine in Chaska on Thursday, were the
29-year-old will return after taking a two-month break to
recover from a trapped nerve in her right hand and wrist.
Wie cannot wait to get back, immensely disappointed at missing
the U.S. Women's Open three weeks ago.
"I'm just doing everything I can to get the inflammation down,"
said the 2014 U.S. Women's Open champion.
"Also working on different biomechanics and trying to make my
swing more sound and trying to use different parts of my body so
that it takes a load off of the hands.
"I started hitting balls last week. Unfortunately, these majors
are all really close together. I'm running on a schedule that's
just not really ideal. The doctors gave me advice to wait until
the last possible moment to pick up a club."
Wie has had a myriad of injuries during her decade as a
professional, her wrist issue just the latest setback to a
career that has not quite reached the heights many expected.
"I was in a car accident two years ago which kind of created
this whole thing," she said of her wrist issue.
"I'm very proud of everything that I've accomplished so far.
I've accomplished two of my biggest dreams, graduated from
Stanford (University) and won the U.S. Open.
"I'm very grateful I was able to do that (but there is) still so
much more I want to accomplish and that's why I'm here, giving
it my all."
(Reporting by Andrew Both in Cary, North Carolina, editing by
Pritha Sarkar)
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