The Cincinnati Enquirer

Reigning U.S. Women's Amateur Public Links champion Michelle Wie, 14, has accepted a special exemption from qualifying for the U.S. Women's Open Championship, which will be played from July 1-4 at the Orchards Golf Club in South Hadley, Mass.

It will be the second consecutive U.S. Women's Open appearance for Wie, who finished tied for 39th at the 2003 championship at Pumpkin Ridge in North Plains, Ore. Her USGA career began when she qualified for the 2000 U.S. Women's Amateur Publinx at age 10, making her the youngest to qualify for a USGA event. She became the youngest to win an "adult" USGA championship when she won the 2003 Women's Amateur Publinx.

Wie will also represent the USA at the Curtis Cup Match June 12-13 in England. She will be the youngest to play in the Curtis Cup.

She has twice finished in the top 10 at the LPGA's Kraft Nabisco Championship. In 2003 she finished in a tie for ninth, and in 2004 she earned a fourth-place finish. She has two other top-20 finishes in LPGA events in 2004 - a 12th-place tie at the Michelob Ultra Open at Kingsmill and a tie for 19th at the Safeway International.

In January, she missed the cut at the PGA Tour's Sony Open by one stroke.

PRESSING FLESCH: Steve Flesch will never forget his 37th birthday. Or the pep talk that preceded it.

That's because the guy who spent Sunday hoisting the Leonard Trophy and blowing out candles on his cake got more than he anticipated during a Saturday night conversation with his 5-year-old son.

Not only did Griffin Flesch spill the beans about the family's impending "surprise" trip to Fort Worth to help Steve celebrate his birthday, he gave Dad something to ponder as he prepared for the final round of the Bank of America Colonial. "He said, 'Are you going to win?,' " Flesch recalled. "And I told him, 'I'll do my best.' "

His son persisted: "You haven't won that much, have you, Dad? You've only won once. Right?"

Twice now. Flesch won the Colonial Sunday by one stroke.

"He's got my personality, a little stubborn. And he gets so jacked up about winning," said Flesch, noting that his trophy from the 2003 HP Classic of New Orleans is on display in Griffin's play room, rather than in Dad's office, at the family home in Union, Ky. "I was looking forward to, hey, if I did win, to have (the family) here to share it with me. It just means more."

The Fort Worth Star-Telegram contributed to this report.