NEW YORK CITY - Two days after Michelle Wie won the U.S. Women's Open, she sat in a Chipotle in the bottom of the Empire State Building eating a burrito bowl.
'Can you believe I was two matches away from playing in the Masters at 15?' asked Wie, who advanced to the quarterfinals of the U.S. Amateur Public Links in 2005.
'Where do you go from there?'
Funny, that's the very question being asked about Wie now that she has won her first major.
The short answer to the question is New York City, where Wie went on a media whirlwind two days after taming Pinehurst No. 2. If this was a glimpse into the future of the LPGA, well, get out your shades.
It's stop-the-car, hold-the-phone, glamorously bright with a touch of TMZ and a twerk for good measure.
Michelle Wie transcends golf on a global scale, and her party is just getting started.
Photo Gallery PHOTOS: Michelle Wie's media tour of NYC
A look at Michelle Wie's whirlwind media tour of New York City on Tuesday.
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At 5:30 a.m. on Tuesday a team of hair and make-up artists arrived in Wie's hotel room along with a stylist who had come in the night before with wardrobe options for her media tour.
A team of 10 piled into a luxury bus bound for 30 Rock and the 'Today Show.' As soon as the van door closed, Wie began a phone interview with SiriusXM PGA Tour radio.
The moment she stepped outside, photographers and TV cameras swarmed to capture the 6-foot stunner, who towered even more than usual thanks to generous heels. Once inside the NBC studios, Carson Daly and Matt Lauer rushed over to offer their congratulations.
'Not one three-putt?' Daly marveled. The hosts then asked to pose with the trophy before going back on air.
Back in the green room, Wie was as giddy about her 'fierce' hair as she was about meeting Daly.
'It's Carson Daly!' she shrieked. 'I grew up watching him like every day of my life.'
While waiting to go out into the plaza with the 'Today Show' gang, Wie talked about the after-party Sunday night. Three reggae bands from Hawaii (friends of Wie's) who were touring together told her on Saturday that they planned to make a detour from their schedule and stop by Pinehurst for the final round.
Two tour buses pulled into the parking lot of the Carolina Hotel. Wie's manager Jamie Kuhn said it was like arts and crafts time on Sunday morning as the bands - The Green, Iration and Revolution - made signs that said #Wiebelieve. They even wore Hawaiian shirts.
When it came time to celebrate, the sound guy went to the trailer and carried a speaker into the party's private room. DJs were aplenty.
Wie spent much of her time on Tuesday's tour talking the twerking video a band member posted that went viral.
'Twerking is like the new hugging,' Wie said, keeping it light.
As Wie left the Today Show set, Natalie Morales told Wie she mistook her for a super model when she first walked in the door.
Once on the street, Harton S. Semple trophy in tow, Wie was immediately ambushed by a TMZ reporter who followed her down 48th Street asking hard-hitting questions such as 'Who's the best tweakier?'
Wie made her way over to 'Fox and Friends', where she taught the morning hosts how to table-top.
'Straighten your knees,' Wie kept repeating.
During a Fox Business interview, Wie tackled a question about growing the tour with such eloquence it seemed as if she were maturing in front of our very eyes. Wie laughed naturally and sat with such perfectly straight posture she looked downright regal with the trophy by her side. She displayed an unusually relaxed confidence all day, not once making a fuss or complaint.
Photo Gallery PHOTOS: Michelle Wie
View a few images of Michelle Wie during a recent photo shoot
When Wie's segment on Fox Business was over, the talk turned to the Alibaba IPO, a jarring transition from golf.
Gerri Willis, host of the Willis Report, made a point to seek out Wie after the hit and take a selfie.
'I watched the whole thing,' Willis said of the tournament. 'Big fan.'
Producers at 'Live with Kelly and Michael' must have liked what they saw because by mid-morning Wie had an offer to come in Tuesday morning to tape a show for Friday. She'll fly to Arkansas immediately after.
Before heading to the next stop, Wie took off her Michael Kors heels and put on her custom-made Nikes with a cheetah-print Swoosh. 'Wiezy' is stitched on the back of the shoes.
The 's', she said, is golfing Wiesy or #vintagewie. 'Wiezy' is the girl who drinks out of the trophy while table-topping.
The name 'Big Wiesy' came from Ernie Els, a frequent playing partner in Jupiter. The Big Easy and Wiesy recently teamed up to take money off of Camilo Villegas and Rickie Fowler in a best-ball match at The Bear's Club.
Fowler actually owes Wie a free loop after she won at Pinehurst.
The pair made a bet when Wie won in Hawaii that whoever took home a trophy next would get the other person as a caddie for a future pro-am.
Back in the van, Wie asked a member of the LPGA communications staff if there was anything specific she wanted mentioned to tout the tour.
'That's from being on the communications committee,' Wie said, laughing. 'Do you know how many stats come through my email?'
Ten tournaments added in the last four years; 90 percent of television coverage now live; six new domestic events.
Wie's head is constantly spinning with new ideas for the LPGA. Like taking her love of food and the tour's travel schedule and hitting up 'Diners, Drive-ins and Dives.'
'I feel very honored that I'm in this position,' said Wie. 'We put in a lot of hours trying to figure out ways to promote the tour and make it better.'
After a call into the Dan Patrick Show and a live segment on CNN Newsroom, Wie dropped into an Omega boutique on Fifth Avenue to show love to her sponsor.
A couple that lived in the neighborhood was shopping in the store (sipping on champagne) when Wie walked in with the trophy. Neither of them played golf, but the wife clued in her husband about the details of the surprise visitor.
Wie did the same at Niketown where, oddly, a second person mistook the Women's Open trophy for the Stanley Cup.
Nike founder Phil Knight had emailed Wie a congratulatory note and told her that he cried when she won. Louise Suggs passed on her praise through Nike Golf president Cindy Davis. Barbara Nicklaus texted to say that she and Jack were proud and this major was the first of many.
Fans constantly stopped Wie on the street for an autograph or a picture. She could've easily passed for an actress or a model.
'I still don't understand how people recognize me,' Wie said.
When asked about her dating life, Wie joked: 'I'm going to start buying cats.'
Funny, it's Wie's history with men (on the course) that has made her one of the most recognizable female athletes in the world.
It was on a 55-second ride up the Empire State Building that Wie revealed a fear of heights. She talked about the time she once hit balls off a skyscraper in Dubai during a sandstorm. The building was still under construction and the makeshift elevator didn't help.
By the time Wie got to the Empire State observation deck, her fears had shifted to the wind, TV cameras and her short skirt.
With the city skyline as a backdrop and the world at her feet, Wie's potential seemed limitless.
'I feel like the luckiest girl in the world right now,' she said.
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