The Honda Classic player spotlight: Ernie Els

text size

Mar. 8, 2009
By PGATOUR.COM

Each week during the 2009 season, PGATOUR.COM will spotlight one key player in the field. (Click here to see previous spotlights.) For this week's Honda Classic, it's Ernie Els, the defending champion.

Consider this file to be your one-stop source for everything concerning Ernie this week, with links to Ernie-related content, notes and stats, and video and other multimedia elements. Then, once competition starts, we'll update this file every day with Ernie's results and statistics after each round in Palm Beach Gardens.

Ernie's round-by-round results

Rd.	Score	Position	Eagles	Birdies	Pars	Bogeys	Others	SHOT TRACKER
1	73 (3-over par)	T82	0	2	11	5	0	Click to replay round
Ernie struggled in the first round on Thursday with a 3-over 73. Ernie had a colorful front nine -- his back nine -- recording two birdies and three bogeys. After the first round, Ernie was tied for 82nd.
2	70 (even par)	T63	0	5	9	3	1	Click to replay round
Ernie rolled in a 7-footer to save par on his final hole Friday to make the cut on the number at 3-over par. The defending champion will go into the weekend 10 shots out of the lead.
3	70 (even par)	T47	0	2	14	2	0	Click to replay round
Ernie shot even-par 70 for the second consecutive day, but this time, it was a far more consistent round. Two bogeys on the front nine and two birdies on the back were a big improvement from his Friday round, which included three bogeys and a double. At 3 over for the week, though, Ernie is 10 shots behind the leader and will need a really strong Sunday just to secure a top-25 finish.
4	66 (4-under par)	T22	0	5	12	1	0	Click to replay round
After making the cut on the number Friday, Ernie -- the defending champ -- saved his best effort for the final round with a 4-under 66. His lone bogey of the day came on the second hole and he was solid from there on out, bouncing back with a birdie on the very next hole to go along with three more birdies on the way in.

Wednesday
Read: See what Els had to say in his pre-tournament interview
Watch: Els' pre-tournament press conference

Ernie Els: Featured content

	TOP 100 PLAYERS TO WATCH. In our list of the Top 100 Players to Watch in 2009, find out where Ernie landed. Click here for more
	THE HONDA CLASSIC WIN. After three long years without a win, the Big Easy got back in the winners' circle at The 2008 Honda Classic. Click here for more
	ELS' FIVE BEST WINS. From the 1994 U.S. Open to the 2004 World Golf Championships-American Express Championship, we've ranked Ernie Els' top TOUR wins. Which one is No. 1? Click here for more
	ELS SPEAKS FOR AUTISM. Craig Dolch writes that Ernie Els' victory last year did so much more than boost his career. It gave him a chance to speak about a cause close to his heart. Click here for more
	PLAYER PAGE. Want more on Ernie? On his PGATOUR.com player page, you can check out his results through the years, or how he ranks on TOUR in certain statistical categories. Click here for player page

Ernie Els: Featured videos

	SWINGPLEX. Take a look at Ernie Els' swing with our special slow-motion video. Click here to watch
	ELS TALKS CRICKET. South African Ernie Els commented about his homeland's cricket team being the squad to hand the Australian team their first home loss in a 3 game test series in 16 years. Click here to watch
	FLASHBACK: THE HONDA CLASSIC. At The 2008 Honda Classic, Ernie Els returned to the PGA TOUR winners circle after a four year absence. Click here to watch
	FAMILY AND AUTISM Ernie and Liezl Els speak out about their son's diagnosis with autism. Click here to watch
	KIDS WILL BE KIDS. Ernie Els introduces his daughter to Ian Poulter Click here to watch

Take Five

Five things you should know about Ernie Els

	He's not just a force on the PGA TOUR; Els does have 16 TOUR wins, but that's nothing compared to his 44 international victories.
	He started playing golf at age 9, but, an accomplished junior tennis player, he didn't turn his full attention to golf until age 14.
	He hosts the Ernie Els Invitational in South Africa to raise money for his charity -- the Ernie Els Foundation formed in early 1999, with the purpose of providing full support to disadvantaged children.
	After winning The Honda Classic in 2008, Els announced that his son Ben was autistic and has since been heavily involved in raising awareness for Autism.
	In 2002, the 2000 Engelbrecht-Els wine was released and received the highest rating yet given to a South African wine.

Els' Close Calls

Like Jack Nicklaus, who famously finished runner-up in majors more times than he won, Ernie Els always seems to come close to winning the big events. In 93 career starts in the four majors, THE PLAYERS Championship and THE TOUR Championship, Els has notched top-10 finishes nearly 40 percent of the time.
Tournament	Total starts	Top 10s	Years with top-10s (Finish)
Masters	15	6	1994 (T8), 2000 (2nd), 2001 (T6), 2002 (T5), 2003 (T6), 2004 (2nd)
U.S. Open	16	7	1993 (T7), 1994 (WON), 1996 (T5), 1997 (WON), 2000 (T2), 2005 (T5), 2004 (T9)
British Open	18	11	1992 (T5), 1993 (T6), 1996 (T2), 1997 (T10), 2000 (T2), 2003 (T3), 2002 (WON), 2004 (2nd), 2006 (3rd), 2007 (T4), 2008 (T7)
PGA Championship	16	4	1995 (T3), 2003 (T5), 2004 (T4), 2007 (3rd)
THE PLAYERS	15	4	1996 (T8), 1997 (T10), 2006 (T8), 2008 (T6)
TOUR Championship	13	6	1996 (T6), 2000 (T3), 2001 (T2), 2004 (T10), 2006 (T10), 2008 (T6)