Michelle Wie West played what felt like her final competitive round at the Us Women's Open on Friday, and Riviera Country Club gave her a farewell that was equal parts familiar and final. She shot a four-over 75 in the second round, finished at seven over for 36 holes and missed the cut by a few shots.
The timing mattered because this was the last likely chapter of a U.S. Women's Open career that stretched back to her 2014 win at Pinehurst, when she earned a decade of exemptions into the championship. Those exemptions were lengthened by a couple of years of maternity leave, and Riviera became the setting for a goodbye with her parents, B.J. and Bo, the family nanny and two of her three dogs on hand. Her 6-year-old daughter, Makenna, was coaxed onto the final green for a hug after the second round, then asked if she could leave the cameras and fans to see a friend.
Wie West said the pressure itself was part of the appeal. She called it fun to hit shots under pressure and said there is really nothing in normal life that recreates it, which is why it felt good to experience again. That feeling came with a cold putter, though, and the score showed it.
The result also fit the quiet arc of her recent starts. She had talked about retirement years ago and made it real at Pebble Beach in 2023, then competed only once before this week, at last month’s Mizuho Americas Open in Jersey, where she failed to break 80. She did not play at Lancaster in 2024 or at Erin Hills in 2025, so this week was as close as she came to a full return before stepping away again.
Riviera had a personal pull beyond the leaderboard. Jerry West was a member there and raised his kids down the street, which helped make Friday feel less like a stop and more like a signoff. No future competitive start was confirmed, and that leaves her last appearance at the Us Women's Open looking like exactly what it appeared to be on the course: a final swing at the game she once dominated, then let go.
