The winner of the US Women’s Open in 2014, Michelle Wie West, will return to competition three and a half years after announcing her retirement from professional golf. The 36-year-old American golfer confirmed on Monday that she will be part of the new WTGL, a team golf platform in collaboration with the LPGA Tour that will kick off next winter.
Wie West‘s last competitive appearance on the circuit was at the US Women’s Open in 2023, held at Pebble Beach, where she failed to make the cut after posting two rounds of 79. That week marked the end of a career highlighted by precocious talent, with five victories on the LPGA and a major that established her as one of the most high-profile figures in women’s golf over the past decade.
Michelle, married since 2019 to Jonnie West, basketball operations executive for the Golden State Warriors, has focused her life in recent years on family and her business ventures. The couple has two children: Makenna, born in 2020, and Jagger, born in 2024. She now partially steps away from this to once again enjoy the great passion of her life, golf.
In the years leading up to her retirement, injuries and motherhood allowed her to explore her entrepreneurial profile more deeply. A graduate of Stanford, Wie became actively involved in social impact initiatives. In 2021, her support for the #HoodiesforGolf campaign helped raise over $350,000 for organisations dedicated to providing education, access, and instruction in diverse communities. In 2023, she collaborated with the brand Wove in designing a charity bracelet whose proceeds went towards the recovery of Maui following the devastating fires.
Additionally, the former Number One in the women’s amateur ranking has made it one of her personal goals to invest in companies founded by minority women, projects with a sustainable focus, and companies that promote diversity. Among the firms linked to her portfolio are LA Golf, Sportsbox AI, Tonal, and Togethxr, the latter focused on increasing investment and media coverage of women’s sports. She also serves as a brand ambassador for Mizuho and host of the Mizuho Americas Open on the LPGA Tour, and was part of the inaugural ownership group of the first TGL franchise, Los Angeles Golf Club.
Her return will be alongside the WTGL, a format that, like the TGL, will offer a dynamic and fast-paced team match play season from the SoFi Center in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida. Alongside Wie, several stars of the circuit have already confirmed their participation: world Number One Jeeno Thitikul, number three Charley Hull, triple major winner Lydia Ko, Lottie Woad, double major winner Brooke Henderson, Rose Zhang, and Lexi Thompson.
“As an investor in Los Angeles Golf Club and a fan of the TGL, I am thrilled to have the opportunity to compete again through the WTGL, which will be a powerful platform for women’s golf,” stated Wie West in a statement. “I am passionate about growing this sport, and the TGL has shown how new formats, through innovation and creativity, can bring golf to a wider audience. The team component, along with the unique environment of the SoFi Center, is something I want to be part of. It’s going to be incredibly fun to challenge myself again, this time alongside teammates, to compete against the best in the world,” she concluded.
The official start date of the WTGL will be announced soon, but the return of Michelle Wie West is already one of the major attractions for a competition that aims to redefine the way women’s golf is consumed in a modern and televised format.
