Wie follows Kaymer to an Open win at Pinehurst

PINEHURST, N.C. — Michelle Wie followed Martin Kaymer to victory at Pinehurst No. 2.

First literally, then figuratively.

When Kaymer made his leisurely stroll up the 18th fairway seven days earlier on his way to sealing the U.S. Open, Wie walked right along with his pairing as a spectator.

“I thought to myself, I want to be here on Sunday,” Wie said. “I want to feel this exact thing.”

A week later, she did.

And now Kaymer and Wie will be forever linked as the champions of Pinehurst’s first-of-its-kind double-dip of U.S. Opens.

Wie’s two-stroke victory over top-ranked Stacy Lewis on Sunday at the U.S. Women’s Open came with a little more stress than Kaymer’s nine-shot romp — especially after Wie’s double bogey on the 16th.

But her long birdie putt a hole later effectively locked it up, and turned her walk up the final fairway into something to savor.