Former U.S. Women's Open champion Michelle Wie left Hazeltine National Golf Club in tears after she played Thursday's opening round in pain and finishing 12-over par.
She left Friday, her voice clear and strong after she missed the cut in the KPMG Women's PGA Championship, adding a round of 82 Friday to Thursday's 84.
Until this week, she hadn't played competitively since April because of a wrist injury.
"I still had fun today," Wie said. "Just golf is hard, Hazeltine is hard. I was just overly optimistic about how I could play this week. I'm just going to go and figure things out a little bit. It was a great week. I'm still happy that I played and got to play Hazeltine."
She said she "for sure" considered withdrawing after she warmed up Friday hitting balls with her wrist still hurting.
"I didn't feel great, but I wanted to finish," she said. "I came here to play. I'm glad these two rounds are over."
She called herself a "very optimistic person" about everything, including about how soon she could play again.
Lydia Ko played the past two days with Wie.
"Golf is hard enough the way it is," Ko said. "Sometimes it hurts even when you've got no pain in your wrists and forearms. I think it just shows what kind of fighter she is."
Burnham makes cut
One week after making the cut for the first time as a pro at the Meijer LPGA Classic, Sarah Burnham has a streak going.
This time Burnham was right on the cut line at plus-5 at the major. That means she'll get to sleep in her own bed at her parents' home for at least two more nights.
The last golfer to qualify for the major — by $3 on the money list — is onto the weekend with a 1-under 71 on Friday. The Maple Grove native finished with a 5-over 149 after the first two days.
"It means so much," Burnham said. "It's crazy that I even got in and then to make the cut on the number is also another crazy surprise to me. Everything's working in my favor this week, I'm just so lucky and honored to be here."
A mighty crack
A large limb from a tree between the fourth and fifth holes cracked during Friday's afternoon rounds. It broke and fell about 20 minutes after staff roped off that area from spectators. It was brought down by Friday's winds.
"It sounded like firecrackers and all of a sudden this branch just fell down," said Burnham, who was walking to the green at the par-3 fourth hole. "It was so windy today. I played it up into the wind and my ball went sky high."
Clear, but windy
After four-tenths of an inch of rain fell on Day 1, it was a lot drier as golfers headed toward the cut. While there wasn't any rain, the wind did play a factor.
"Both days are really tough," said Nelly Korda, who finished 2-under 70 on Day 2. "I think I had to think about it a bit more today because of the wind."
That also meant leader Hannah Green was better dressed on Friday. She played in Thursday's rain and wind in shorts and a jacket her boyfriend fetched.
"After yesterday's rain, I was going to wear pants," Green said. "I had plenty of towels, everything I needed if there was to be rain, which I thought was in the forecast. I'm just glad that we had a drier round."
Army continues
Amy's Army marched on Friday, even though Fargo native Amy Olson missed the cut after shooting 77 and 78. Her family handed out 250 T-shirts declaring her followers her army.
"It meant a lot that they all came out and hung around, even though it wasn't going as well as it could have," Olson said.