Posts Tagged ‘Ernie Els’
Monday, April 11th, 2011
For anyone watching the final day of the Masters, you’ll recognize that name as the newest wearer of the coveted green jacket. He finished the final nail-biting round at Augusta National with a 66, giving him a 14-under-par total of 274. He created a new record for the Masters by scoring birdies on the 4 final holes, and led his closest rivals, Australians Jason Day and Adam Scott by 2 shots.
This was Schwartzel’s 2nd appearance at the Masters. He played at Augusta for the first time last year. Just prior to that, he was at Ernie Els’ Autism Golf Day and got the opportunity to speak with Jack Nicklaus about the famous course. They started talking about hunting then the conversation turned to chasing the little white ball. Schwartzel asked for some advice about the course and Nicklaus took him on a verbal tour of all 18 holes. I guess he heeded the advice!
Schwartzel (26) is from South Africa, where his family has a chicken farm outside Johannesburg. His Dad played with Ernie Els when Charl was very young. Charl was an affiliated member of the Fancourt foundation started by Els that helps young South African golfers, and Els considers Charl to be ‘like a little brother’. Schwartzel’s brother, Attie has also been bitten by the golf bug, and is a pro golfer on the South African Sunshine Tour.
Sunday was the 50th anniversary of fellow South African Gary Player’s Masters win, the first international player to win the prestigious title following a playoff round against Arnold Palmer. His father was a gold miner who played golf and encouraged Player to take up the game. Player was involved in other sports and wasn’t very enthusiastic about golf initially. Player competed for 52 Masters titles and won the green jacket 3 times. He was in Augusta for the Masters again this year.
In closing, I’ll leave you with a few things to ponder:
- For the first time in the history of the Masters the top three did not include an American
- For the first time since 1994, none of the 4 major titles are held by an American
- Seven of the top 10 finishers at the Masters were international players
Tags: Adam Scott, Augusta National, Charl Schwartzel, Ernie Els, Gary Player, Jack Nicklaus, Jason Day, Masters, PGA, PGA Tour
Posted in PGA, PGA Tour | No Comments »
Monday, June 21st, 2010
Graeme McDowell of Northern Ireland claimed the victory for the 2010 US Open. McDowell finished with a 74 (+3)… just 2 putts on the 18th hole to win. This was one great tournament and certainly challenged the best. Going into the final round, Dustin Johnson was leading by 3 strokes. But the table suddenly turned when he shot a triple bogey on the second hole and a double bogey on the third hole. After that it only continued to decline for Johnson as he finished his round with an 82 and tied for 8th place.
Els, Mickelson, Woods, and Havret all struggled to work some magic on the course to take the lead. Only one player could withstand the pressure of the tournament and the challenges of the course and that was Graeme. “I can’t believe how difficult this golf course was,” McDowell said. “No matter how good you play … good golf got reward, and bad golf got punished really badly.”
This is McDowell’s first major tour win. He’s the first European to achieve the feat since Tony Jacklin did it 40 years ago at Hazeltine. McDowell turned pro in 2002. Prior to becomng a pro, McDowell won the Fred Haskins Award as the United States’ top collegiate golfer. Two weeks ago, he won his fifth title at the Celtic Manor Wales Open. McDowell has earned a five year exemption as a result of his victory should he decide to join the PGA Tour. And why wouldn’t he? It’s a golden ticket to playing both the U.S. circuit and the European Tour.
McDowell’s victory was the perfect Father’s Day gift for his dad, Kenny, who has been by his side since he began playing golf in his junior years. For those of you who watched the final shot and green’s celebration, I’m sure you all caught that “Hallmark” moment when father and son hugged in glorious celebration. Congrats to Graeme McDowell for his well-deserved US Open win!
Tags: Ernie Els, Graeme McDowell, PGA, PGA Tour, Phil Mickelson, Tiger Woods, Tony Jacklin, US Open
Posted in General Golf, PGA, PGA Tour | No Comments »
Friday, June 18th, 2010
What a difference a day makes! Phil Mickelson rallied with 5 birdies in the first 8 holes and another on #11 for a final score of 66 in Round 2, placing him one shot behind the leader, Graeme McDowell, who posted a 68. That’s a nine shot variance from Round 1 where he shot a birdie-free round of 75. Mickelson’s score of 66 is just one shot shy of the U.S. Open record lowest score at Pebble Beach. Phil’s focus is that of Bobby Jones…. “play against old man par”…. and that’s exactly what Phil did during today’s round finishing tied for second and placing him in great position for the rest of the tournament.
Tiger Woods finished at +4 with a round of 72. He had 3 birdies and 4 bogeys after his birdie-free Round 1. He’s right in the middle of the pack for the weekend. If he can rally in Round 3 like Phil did today, he’ll be right in the hunt. “ I’m right there in the championship,’’ he said. “I just need to make a few more birdies, a few more putts on the weekend and I’ll be right there.” If Phil and Tiger can get in the groove, Round 3 will prove to be exciting.
Other notable finishes: The “young gun”, Ryo Ishikawa, posted an even par 71 to maintain his second place finish for Round 2. Ernie Els posted a 68, moving him from #27 to tied for second. Dustin Johnson shot a 70 finishing tied for second.
Tags: Dustin Johnson, Ernie Els, Graeme McDowell, PGA, PGA Tour, Phil Mickelson, Tiger Woods, US Open
Posted in PGA Tour, Phil Mickelson, Tiger Woods | No Comments »
Sunday, April 4th, 2010
2010 has proven to be Ernie Els come back year. He broke his 2 year winless streak by capturing the WGC Championship in Doral in March. Ernie then followed that victory when he won the Arnold Palmer Invitational at Bay Hill two weeks later giving him his 18th PGA Tour victory (two 2010 starts and two wins).
Back in 2006, Els put together a 3-year plan…. his goal: To challenge the his American rival…the number one player in the world….Tiger Woods. According to Els’ website, in 2007, he is quoted as saying… “I see 2007 as the start of a three-year plan where I totally re-dedicate myself to the game. I want to win more majors and start giving Tiger a run for his money. If you look at where he is at the top of the rankings, it’s a big lead so no one is going to get near him any time soon. I’ve got to give myself a three-year stretch to try to approach him and I really believe I can do it.” Needless to say, his may have become a little to aggressive in his planning process. Three years have since passed and Tiger remains number one.
However, with Tiger not in the equation the first 3 months of the 2010 golf season, Ernie reminded us of his golfing finesse. The Big Easy (nicknamed for his physical stature and effortless swing) showed his true talent that we all admired when he was on his game in the late 90’s and the early 2000 years. Despite his efforts and his knee injury of 2005, his last major win was at the 2002 Masters. That was eight years ago. Fast forward to 2010…..a year full of endless stories about Tiger’s fall from fame due to his “transgressions” resulting in his decision to take an indefinite (4 month) leave from the game of golf. With his “indefinite” leave coming to an end, Tiger has elected to return to golf at the 2010 Masters in Augusta.
This week, Tiger and Els will go head to head at the Masters. This is the first time Tiger is playing professional golf since November 2009. How will he fare? Will emotions get in the way of his true talent? Can Els give him a run for it? Els has finished as runner-up in six majors over the years. And, most notably runner-up finishes to Tiger (more than any other professional golfer). However, Els has always been described as the golfer with the right game to beat Tiger in a major.
Els is playing every shot and every hole for what it is – like he did before. Els currently leads the FedEx Cup point system and has won two of the four PGA Tour pre-Masters tournaments. The last person to win two of the four tournaments and go on to win the Masters was Tiger Woods in 2002. Can Els recreate Tiger’s 2002 tournament play record and come home with the Green Jacket this year?
Let the golf games begin…..this year’s Masters will certainly prove to be one of the most exciting tournaments of the year!
Posted by Marilyn Harris
Tags: Ernie Els, FedEx Cup, Masters, PGA
Posted in FedEx Cup, General Golf, PGA, Tiger Woods | No Comments »
Sunday, October 11th, 2009
The U.S. Team won The Presidents Cup with 19 1/2 points. Going into the final round on Sunday, the U.S. Team had 12 1/2 points and the International Team had 8 1/2 points. By the end of the singles matches, the U.S. Team earned 19 1/2 points and the International Team finished with 14 1/2 points. A victory for the USA with its 6th Presidents Cup win on home soil.
Prior to Sunday’s matches, the U.S. Team needed 5 points to win the Cup. Here’s how they won…
Camilo Villegas / Hunter Mahan – U.S. wins 2 and 1
Adam Scott / Stewart Cink – U.S. wins 4 and 3
Mike Weir / Justin Leonard – AS
Robert Allenby / Anthony Kim – U.S. wins 5 and 3
Geoff Ogilvy / Steve Stricker – International wins 2 and 1
Ernie Els / Sean O’Hair – U.S. wins 6 and 4
Ryo Ishikawa / Kenny Perry – International wins 2 and 1
Tim Clark / Zach Johnson – International wins 4 and 3
Y.E. Yang / Tiger Woods – U.S. wins 6 and 5
Vijay Singh / Lucas Glover – AS
Retief Goosen / Phil Mickelson – U.S. wins 2 and 1
Angel Cabrera / Jim Furyk – International wins 4 and 3
Tiger Woods’ winning point was also the winning point for the U.S. Team beoming The Presidents Cup champions. Woods had a great Cup experience with wins in all 5 of his matches during the tournament.
Legendary Michael Jordan was on hand to witness the the USA victory. Jordan served as a Presidents Cup assistant. His role was to coach the U.S. team and teach them what team play is all about. And that he did. Congratulations U.S. Team!
Posted by Marilyn Harris
Tags: Adam Scott, Anthony Kim, Camilo Villegas, Ernie Els, Geof Ogilvy, Hunter Mahan, Jim Furyk, Justin Leonard, Kenny Perry, Lucas Glover, Michael Jordan, PGA, Phil Mickelson, Presidents Cup, Robert Allenby, Ryo Ishikawa, Sean O'Hair, Steve Stricker, Stewart Cink, Tiger Woods, Tim Clark, Zach Johnson
Posted in PGA | No Comments »
Friday, September 25th, 2009
Round 2 of the TOUR Championship concludes with Tiger Woods in the lead by one stroke with a 68. He’s 5 under for the tournament. He had a chance to make a run for it but struggled with his putting for what should have been routine for the number one player. During the last 4 holes, Tiger missed a 4 foot putt for an eagle and another 4 footer for a birdie. To top off the missed putts he shot a bogey on the 18th hole. Is Tiger’s putting plagued as a result of his forthcoming putting tip to Sean O’Hair earlier in the week?
Padraig Harrington and Sean O’Hair trail Tiger by one stroke; respectively Harrington with a 69 and 4 under and O’Hair a 70 and 4 under. Other contenders who played well are Ernie Els just 2 behind with a 66; Kenny Perry just 3 behind with a 66; and Jerry Kelly just 3 behind with a 67.
With the emphasize being on who will win the FedEx Cup, based on today’s round, there are a number of scenarios that could play out. Tiger is in great position to win the Fed Ex Cup. Appears that the top five seeded players (Steve Stricker, Jim Furyk, Zach Johnson, Heath Slocum, Padrig Harrington) in FedEx Cup points after Tiger are not in the top ten positions for the TOUR Championship so the probabiliy of a win by any of them is unlikely. But there’s still a lot of golf to be played! Let’s see who makes the move in Round 3.
Posted by Marilyn Harris
Tags: Ernie Els, FedEx Cup, Heath Slocum, Jerry Kelly, Jim Furyk, Kenny Perry, Padraig Harrington, PGA, Steve Stricker, Tiger Woods, Tour Championship, Zach Johnson
Posted in FedEx Cup, PGA, Tiger Woods | No Comments »
Monday, August 31st, 2009
The FedEx Cup playoffs kicked off this past week at The Barclays and an underdog, Heath Slocum, rises to the occassion to capture the tournament title and 2,500 FedEx Cup points. His win took him from the 124th position on the FedEx Cup Points Standing to 3rd! Now, that’s quite a feat going from barely making the cut for the playoffs to only two behind Tiger Woods. Slocum trails by 1,526 points behind Tiger.
On the 18th hole, what should have been a routine six foot putt for Tiger turned out to be a two putt keeping him at 8 under for the tournament. Heath, on the otherhand, made his par save 20 foot putt to clinch the tournament title on the 72nd hole for a one-shot victory and jumped on the FedEx Cup Points board to third place with 2,855 total earned points.
Had Slocum missed the winning putt, he would have forced a playoff with quite a cast of golf greats that would have been fun to see… Tiger Woods, Steve Stricker, Ernie Els, and Padrig Harrington. But Slocum shut them all out with his spectacular long putt on the 18th.
Slocum turned pro in 1996. In 2009, he played in 24 events and made the cut in 14 with average scoring of 70.55 and earnings of $1,885,815. He’s an alumni of the University of South Alabama.
Congratulations to Heath Slocum in his big victory in the first 2009 FedEx Cup playoff!
Posted by Marilyn Harris
Tags: Ernie Els, FedEx Cup, Heath Slocum, Padraig Harrington, Steve Stricker, The Barclays, Tiger Woods, University of South Alabama
Posted in PGA | No Comments »
