When Michelle Wie blows out the 17 candles on her cake today, no one but the birthday girl will truly know her wish.

But her dreams have often been beyond our comprehension, as are her gifts for golf.

She intrigues us and transcends mere sport. She is revered and reviled. Wie, a year into her life as a golf professional and nine months from barely passing her driving test, still perceives no speed limits. She perceives no limits at all.

"I want Michelle's dreams to come true," GolfWorld Executive Editor Ron Sirak said, "because the most important lesson she has to teach us all is that what we achieve is limited in large part by what we believe we can achieve. She has enormous vision."

Many analyze the good fortune and misfortune of her first year as the prodigy pro in high definition. They detail her immense success on the LPGA tour but can't help wonder why she has yet to win. They recall the early breakthroughs against male competition and still cringe at the late frustration.

They remain in awe at the multimillion dollar endorsement contracts she smiled about that day just before her 16th birthday when she officially announced her professional debut. But they also wonder how any child can weather the tsunami of attention Wie routinely generates.

The Wies look at the last year as a blur.

"It has been a very special year," said her father, BJ. "To watch Michelle grow as a golfer and as a person this year is unlike any other experience Bo and I have ever had."

He calls the past year "one long highlight" interrupted only rarely by the difficulty of watching his daughter go through the "inevitable growing pains" in front of a still-fascinated world.

SHE DRAWS A CROWD

The fascination shows no sign of abating. When she plays, organizers estimate galleries are up as much as 50 percent, along with TV ratings. This for a child whose sole birthday request is to get a puppy.

"This 16-year-old chick is, herself, a happening," wrote Dan Jenkins in the May/June issue of Golf for Women. "She comes with looks, length, youth and incredible talent. One reason Wie can pack a house is because she's the potential Fem Tiger. But another reason is because golf fans are hungering for something unique, different, intriguing."

Her appeal continues to soar. The Marketing Arm in Dallas helps companies choose celebrities to endorse their products based on the celebrity's unique appeal. Wie ranks in the middle (No. 778) of the 1,500 famous people fed into its Davie-Brown Index, and 296th among women. More intriguing, her "appeal" rating is equal to Tiger Woods, who is ranked 14th overall and far ahead of any other golfer. Wie also rates higher than Jack Nicklaus and Phil Mickelson.

"The nut story on Michelle is that those who know of Michelle find her to be very appealing and certainly a good spokesperson," said Bill Glenn, Marketing Arm's Vice President of Strategic Insights and Analytics.

"That's not a huge surprise. She's young. People love young individuals excelling in their profession. People tend to look at them and wish I could have done that at 16. And there's certainly her appeal. You look at her on Letterman, and she's a very likeable person."

SPONSORS ENTHUSED

Sony and Nike, who bought their way into the Wie entourage a year ago with contracts estimated at a combined $10 million a year, have lost none of their enthusiasm.

Sony will start a Christmas blitz of print, online and store displays featuring Wie next month. It is her first solo and off-the-course campaign for the electronics giant, which sees her as "the consummate user of Sony products — that's her lifestyle," according to Stuart Redsun, Sony's vice president of corporate marketing.

Sony will concentrate more of its Wie efforts in Asia next year, according to Redsun. He characterizes the first year with Wie as "terrific" and sees her appeal touching golfers and beyond, as "someone youthful and exuberant and graceful to show our products."

Nike's interest is different. The athletic company asks for Wie's insights on equipment and apparel. Her universal appeal and global schedule have been featured in American print campaigns and television ads in the Asia-Pacific region. She has made appearances at retail stores, where her image is displayed.

The fact that Wie is a full-time student at Punahou School adds another element among Nike's predominantly full-time athletes. Cindy Davis, Nike Golf's U.S. general manager, said the company is "very mindful" of her part-time pro status in terms of how much and how she is featured.

"We've used her in a very inspirational way in our campaigns because Michelle is stepping out and doing things that not a lot of 16- and 17-year old girls do," Davis said. "We've definitely used her in regard to apparel and being a great image to wear and show our product to the marketplace."

A 'PHENOMENAL' YEAR

As a former LPGA vice president, Davis is also in a unique position to gauge Wie's progress in her first year as a pro. Put into the context of her age and status as a full-time student, Davis calls Wie's year "phenomenal" because she put herself in contention to win so often.

"She has definitely performed," Davis said. "I think at times the media and others have been unduly critical of Michelle. She's had some really great performances out there. She is an energy creator. It's exciting every time she tees it up and she continues to be very courageous and dare to dream differently than anyone else."

More than anything, that might be what drew the William Morris Agency to Wie. She is the only golfer on a client list dominated by Hollywood actors, directors and writers.

Earlier this year, William Morris president David Wirtschafter told "60 Minutes" that Wie's youth, femininity and "skill that's off the charts" is a "very, very rare combination."

"Almost every demographic is anxious to watch her play and anxious to see what she does next," Wirtschafter said then. "She will be one of the few athletes who essentially transcends sports and becomes somebody people pay attention to in popular culture."

Is that already true, or will Wie have to win first, or dominate, or knock down the gender door she keeps trying to kick in?

Most that follow her believe the wins will come. Many, including those with the biggest investment in her future, believe the first win will relieve the intense pressure Wie faces and start a flood that could drown women's golf — in a good way.

"Once you win you're going to have confidence," says Hawai'i's David Ishii, whose first win in Japan led to a brilliant career. "Once you win, it's contagious. It's not necessarily going to come all in one year, but each year it will be that much easier. It will happen quicker and when it happens earlier it will come more often. It will feel more normal to be winning.

"She's only 17. If she wins before she's 20, from 20 to 27 how much can she win? Will it be like Tiger? She might win 50 tournaments."

ACCOMPLISHED TEEN

Jay Coffin, senior writer for Golfweek, says Wie has accomplished more at 17 than many women have in their LPGA careers. He would like her to concentrate on the LPGA tour the next five years and mature into a consistent, confident winner before going back after the guys.

"The next two years," Coffin said, "will tell us what sort of future Michelle Wie will have."

GolfWorld's Sirak insists "no one has been this accomplished in professional tournaments at the age of 17." He characterizes Wie's learning curve as "enormously positive."

Going into the Samsung World Championship tomorrow, her final LPGA event of the year, Wie has won $718,343 in just seven starts. She would be 14th on the money list if she were a member. Her scoring average of 70.34 would put her fifth.

If not for the disqualification at Samsung a year ago, Wie would have had top-five finishes in nine consecutive LPGA events over the last two years. She has yet to miss a cut in a major, despite playing her first two at age 13, and has top-five finishes in all 12 she has played.

"She has a terrific swing. You can't beat the mechanics," said Lenore Muraoka Rittenhouse, a Roosevelt graduate who played on the LPGA tour for 20 years. "Like everyone else, I have my opinion. I think she should play with the best women players and dominate. I think she would."

But for now, that is all hypothesis. Wie is not an LPGA member, and cannot become one until her 18th birthday, unless she successfully petitions the association. Until she is a member, she can play just six LPGA events a year, and the U.S. and British Women's Opens.

Even for a student with just two weeks a semester free to play hooky, that would leave a huge gap in her golf year and seriously slow her progress.

The Wies, who admit they are still learning the art of scheduling, have filled the pukas by accepting exemptions to men's events all over the world, which are gleefully offered by organizers anxious for the attention that stalks Wie.

The family is extremely pleased with her progress against "the best players in the world," particularly in terms of course management, understanding her swing and fitness.

Others are not so sure, from the PGA Tour pros who complain about her hogging exemptions and creating a sideshow to those more in touch with her dreams who simply disagree with her direction.

Former Kailua resident Scott Simpson, now in contention for Champions Tour Rookie of the Year, believes Wie should stay away from men's events now that she is 17, with one exception — the Sony Open in Hawai'i.

"Waialae is a good course for her, it helps the tournament, and it's just fun for everyone to see if she can make the cut," Simpson said. "But otherwise, what does it prove to make the cut in another men's event? I think it would be better to petition the LPGA for membership and to start making her mark out there."

Wie made her first men's cut this year on the Asian Tour and transformed a normally mellow U.S. Open sectional in New Jersey into a media madhouse when she was the first female to advance from a local qualifier.

But she missed five other men's cuts, withdrawing because of heat exhaustion in one and finishing last in her final two. In her last 99 holes on the PGA Tour, Wie is 34-over par.

Rittenhouse, whose son William is three years younger than Wie, is worried about her.

"Her mechanics are excellent, but a lot of guys' mechanics are excellent and they are stronger," Rittenhouse said. "Day in and day out that rough can take a toll. She is going to get hurt. I remember Tiger hurting his hand in the rough at the Open. That's dangerous playing those conditions day in and day out."

Kapalua's Mark Rolfing, an NBC/Golf Channel analyst who will be with Wie this week at Samsung, likes her swing but thinks Wie's short game still needs to save more shots.

"Golfers ask why doesn't she play more LPGA events. More than half don't know she's not eligible," Rolfing said. "They don't understand the Hawai'i situation. She couldn't just jump in a car and go to all the AJGA (national junior) events. They don't know she won the state Women's Open by 12 when she was 12 years old."

A HAVEN AT SCHOOL

Wie's time at Punahou, particularly now in her senior year, is a haven from all the craziness her unique talents have created. She calls it the normal side of her "dual life," with a giggle.

Her father believes it is where she is most comfortable. He feels his daughter's school friends give her "a comfort zone insulated from the intensity of professional golf" and keep her grounded.

Michelle admits life is hectic, but has few regrets about her first pro year, which she called "very successful" and filled with "a lot more ups than downs."

"It was hectic because there was, you know, school and then golf and then sponsors," she said. "So the first year it's always like you're never really ready for it no matter how much you prepare for it. It's just like, oh my gosh ... it was hectic but it was fun. I can't imagine it going another way."

BJ Wie says the goal in the future is simply to have his daughter continue to enjoy this unique life she has wedged out for herself, with a growing army of off-the-course help. Her future will include college, he said. Michelle is in the midst of filling out applications and writing essays. Others write essays about her.

"I believe there will one day be females competing successfully on the PGA Tour," said GolfWorld's Sirak. "That day may be 10 years away. Even if it is, Michelle will be only 27 and could very likely be that pioneer."

Michelle Wie is 17. The pressure mounts. Surely she has a birthday wish beyond a puppy.

Reach Ann Miller at amiller@honoluluadvertiser.com.