At first we had no intention of Michelle Wie’s teeing up in the opening Asian swing because it was so heavy a load for her at Stanford this winter quarter, but actually Wie is referring to the open season in Thailand Feb.18-21 and the HSBC Women’s Champions event in Singapore the next week.

Wie’s commitment to college while playing the LPGA is evident in the fact that she’s taking 20 credits this quarter to meet the pace of a junior. She once again plans on taking a leave of absence in the spring quarter to concentrate on tour golf. While those in the know say she wants to make the Asian trip, she’s meeting with her professors to see about her workload and whether she can fulfill her class requirements playing there.

Don't be surprised to see Wie in Asia, which will be a terrific boost for the tour and the start of new commissioner Michael Whan's tournament reign. Wie, who broke through to win her first LPGA event in Mexico in November, took one of her final exams (in statistics) while competing at the Dubai Ladies Masters last month.

If Wie decides the Asian trip interferes too much with her Stanford workload, she plans to make her debut in the American start of the schedule in the third event of the season, the LPGA Classic Presented by J Golf at La Costa Resort & Spa March 25-28.