Michelle Wie West is one of golf's most recognizable stars. But a trip through an airport provided a humbling reminder. She thought fans were greeting her, but soon realized the attention was for something she was wearing.

On a We Need A Fourth podcast from September 2025, the pro discussed. “I’m walking at the Charlotte airport, I’m walking, and all these guys are giving me a what’s up and I’m like, wow! I’m getting recognized a lot today, you know, feeling good about myself, everyone’s recognizing me.”

Now Wie West has a number of achievements: being the youngest player to qualify for a USGA amateur championship, a win on the PGA Tour, and even a few strong finishes at the major. But that's not what got her noticed.

“I realize I have a Masters hat on, I’m like oh! That’s why all these guys are like what’s up?” Not because they recognize who I am but they're jealous that I went to the Masters.” West added, noting that people did not really recognized her but because she was carrying the Masters swag.

People weren't looking at her in awe, but in envy! That's because Masters tickets are incredibly hard to come by. Fans may watch the tournament for decades but never get to visit. And it's due to the lottery for the tickets that takes place annually. Naturally, it had fans looking at her, wondering how they could visit as well!

Well, Wie West will be visiting a bunch of tournaments as well.

Michelle Wie West Returning to Action Soon

From an announcement via X on Monday, TGL posts the return of the golf prodigy to join WTGL, stating Michelle Wie West is coming out of retirement.

WTGL is a new team-based indoor golf platform in partnership with the LPGA, which will launch in winter 2026-27, according to TMRW Sports.

Michelle had retired from LPGA citing issues related to her injuries in 2023 after winning multiple tournaments including the U.S. Women’s Open at Pinehurst.

“As an investor in Los Angeles Golf Club and a fan of TGL, I’m excited for the chance to compete again through WTGL, which will be a powerful platform for women’s golf,” Michelle said.

Read more at Daily Club Golf!

Written by

Pulkit Prabhav

Edited by

Siddharth Shirwadkar