Forbes released another highest paid athletes list, this one focusing on the ladies.

The good news is that not only are these woman closing the gap on their male counterparts, most of the millions come from tennis and golf where performance directly affects earnings. Conversely, a great portion of the men's top paid athletes were the result of horrendous contracts.

The bad news is that Michelle Wie is the top earning golfer and No. 5 overall.

Here's the Top 10 highest paid female athletes (millions): (biggest endorsers)

1. Maria Sharapova $26 million (Nike, Pepsi)
2. Serena Williams $14 (Hewlett-Packard, Nike)
3. Venus Williams $13 (EleVen - her own fashion line, Nike)
4. Justine Henin $12.5
5. Michelle Wie $12 (Nike, Sony)
6. Annika Sorenstam $11 (Callaway Golf)
7. Lorena Ochoa $10 (Audio, Lacoste)
8. Danica Patrick $8 (Motorola)
9. Ana Ivanovic $6 (Adidas)
10. Paula Creamer $6 (Adidas, Taylor Made)

This dream team has a combined 261 professional titles, and several dozen of those coming in major events.

Of course, Michelle Wie has contributed nothing to that total, yet she finds herself as one of the most "successful" female athletes of our time. I had a big problem with that. I'll sound like a crotchety old man here, but this is one of the bigger problems in sports today.

We have to stop showering young athletes with money and praise before they actually prove themselves. While Paula Creamer has had to work hard to earn her bucks, most of her $6 million has come from winning, Michelle Wie has finished last place after last place with little focus on improving her game and often laying the blame elsewhere. I applaud her decision to attend college, which is without question the only reasonable explanation for why she hasn't performed any better.

This weekend Wie will be competing in a men's PGA Tour event, because some misguided sponsor threw some money down just to watch her drive as long as the men and fail to make the cut, finishing presumably in last.

I realize this isn't ever going to change. Soon, Nike will throw nine figures down on a thirteen-year-old golfer, male or female, because they can drive as far as John Daly and we will all be certain that he/she won't amount to anything in that professional field with their life already paid for.

Let's call Michelle Wie wealthy, but let's not include successful just yet.

Top-Earning Female Athletes [Forbes]