"It’s open … just gotta get through a local and sectional qualifier … they can’t ask you if you’re a garbage man or a bean picker or a driving range pro whose checks are signed by a stripper. You qualify, you’re in."

» Roy "Tin Cup" McAvoy

Quick, someone call Child Protective Services. There’s an 11-year-old being abused.

She’s playing golf and eating ice cream. She’s hanging out with her idols. She’s being ruined for life.

Lucy Li, who is younger than my car, played her way into the U.S. Women’s Open. Fair and square.

She shot a 78 on Thursday. That’s not very good, but she was tied after the first round with Lizette Salas and Suzann Pettersen, and you might remember Pettersen edging Salas in a playoff to win the 2013 Lotte Championship here.

Li probably won’t make the cut, but apparently she wasn’t traumatized so terribly that she won’t be back for the second round. Maybe some more birdie putts. Certainly some more ice cream.

So far she’s achieving her stated goal of "having fun."

Stacy Lewis, the first-round leader at 3-under 67 and the No. 1 player on the money list, made some pre-tourney comments, saying she’s "not a fan" of a player so young as Li being in the field.

I say get over it.

What would Lewis suggest as a minimum age to play in the U.S. Women’s Open? A 10-year-old did, and she turned out good enough to place second in two LPGA tournaments.

Lewis, 29, didn’t play in any majors until her 20s. That worked for her but it’s not the only path to success.

Michelle Wie, a stroke behind Lewis going into Friday’s play, has been playing in this tournament since 2003, the year Li was born, and Wie was 13.

Whether you hated the Wie teen hype or not, here she is now — a seasoned pro with three LPGA wins at the matronly age of 24. Maybe the narrative of her early years will eventually change from she was supposed to be "learning how to win" to she "learned how to lose." If you’re going to play golf, you’d better learn how to accept not winning all the time.

No one expects Lucy Li to become the next Michelle Wie. Michelle Wie is still working on becoming the first Michelle Wie.

I hate artificial age limits in any sport. If you can play, you can play. You shouldn’t be forced to go to college if you don’t want to and you’ve got NBA talent.

Maybe it’s different when the alternative is Summer Fun? No. Like I said, Li played her way in. It’s not like she’s a sideshow sponsor’s exemption.

That criticism was leveled at Wie at times, especially when the novelty of a teenage girl trying to make the cut at a men’s event in effect kept a "legit" player out of the field.

Again, this tournament is different. Hawaii girls Wie, 16, Ayaka Kaneko, 16, Stephanie Kono, 15, and Kimberly Kim, 14, all played in the 2006 U.S. Women’s Open. In horrendous conditions, Kim made the cut, and Wie tied for third.

Wie was the only one who had turned pro; the others were free to return home and "learn how to win" against girls their own age — as Li can after this week.

If they earn their way in, there’s nothing wrong with kids getting a taste of big-time golf. Or the ice cream.

Reach Dave Reardon at dreardon@staradvertiser.com or 529-4783. Read his blog at staradvertiser.com/quickreads.