Michelle Wie (1989-)
Before Michelle Wie was a professional spokeswoman, she was a helluva golfer. As a kid, she decimated other amateur golfers before qualifying for the USGA amateur championship at 10 (the youngest ever). She was also the youngest woman to qualify for a LPGA tour event before turning pro just shy of her 16th birthday in 2005. Unfortunately, she never lived up to her hype after turning pro. But she does look far better in golf pants than Craig Stadler.
Jet Li (1963-)
Jet Li could have easily kicked your adult ass when he was 12, which is when he first won medals for his proficiency in wushu. That may sound like a type of Chinese pork dish, but it’s in fact a martial arts discipline — and the sound of Li’s foot as it cuts through the air toward your head.
H.P. Lovecraft (1890-1936)
Lovecraft was reciting poetry when he was 2 and writing long poems when he was 5. Can you remember your longest composition as a 5 year old? Neither can we, but it definitely contained a lot of backwards Ks and Es.
Arfa Karim (1995-2012)
Arfa became the youngest Microsoft Certified Professional in 2004 at the age of 9. Granted, most computer whizzes are kids, but Afra was so good she got noticed by the grand poobah of nerdy computer whizzes himself, Bill Gates. So he invited her to travel from her home in Pakistan to Microsoft Headquarters in Seattle … presumably to beg her not to let everyone know how crappy Windows Vista was going to be.
