KAPOLEI, Hawaii -- Michelle Wie will begin the season in Hawaii for the fifth straight year, this time against the women.

Wie accepted a sponsor's exemption on Tuesday to play in The Fields Open at Ko Olina Golf Club, hopeful of getting her career back on track after a troublesome season of injuries, missed cuts and withdrawals.

The 18-year-old freshman at Stanford has started her season at the Sony Open on the PGA Tour the last four years and nearly made the cut as a 14-year-old. But she has yet to make a cut in seven tries on the PGA Tour, and she did not play the Sony Open this year.

The Fields Open, where Wie tied for third two years ago, starts Feb. 21.

Ayaka Kaneko, a 17-year-old student at Sacred Hearts Academy in Honolulu, also received an exemption to play at Ko Olina.

Kaneko advanced to the quarterfinals of last year's U.S Women's Amateur Public Links and finished second in the U.S. Girls Jr. Championship. She also competed in the 2006 U.S. Women's Open.