Blog: Els makes it look "Big Easy" at CA Championship

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Ernie Els won the CA Championship last weekend.

The "Big Easy" has made his way back to the winner's circle after the capturing the title at the second World Golf Championship of the year -- the CA Championship. With water and sand virtually everywhere on the TPC Blue Monster course at Doral, Els was in full control of his game as he pulled away from his fellow South African Charl Schwartzelk.

Listen to Travis Fulton

PGA TOUR Golf Academy's Travis Fulton breaks down the keys to Ernie Els' win at Doral on the PGA TOUR Network (XM 146, SIRIUS 209). Click to listen

One of the many great traits that Ernie Els has in his game is his silky smooth tempo. This week in southern Florida, this incredible tempo was on full display from his improved driving to his always-stellar bunker play. It really is amazing just how smooth a 6'4" man can look when swinging a golf club but this is exactly what happens when Ernie Els puts the club in motion.

This smooth and uninterrupted tempo is something we can all learn from. We have all been guilty from time to time to getting too quick going back, too fast in transition or perhaps de-accelerating through impact. Often times when working on tempo with my students, I will use Ernie Els as an example. What's interesting is not only is Els tempo a good mental image for the full swing but I find myself referring to the "Big Easy" in the greenside bunker as well.

Ernie Els has always been one of the true greats when it comes to bunker play. On Sunday at the Par 3 16th, we were treated to another one of these soft greenside gems, as Ernie saved par and extended his lead.

The greenside bunker shot is different than any other shot in golf. It is the only shot where you're actually trying to miss the ball by aiming for the sand approximately 2-3 inches behind the ball. When executed properly, you will create a pillow of sand that will carry the golf ball out of the bunker and onto the green.

The sand wedge is designed specifically for this unique shot with more bounce (a wide, rounded mass behind and below the leading edge of the clubface) than any other club in the set. The extra bounce on the sand wedge will promote the club to slide through the sand rather than dig. This is important as a well-executed sand shot will slide the club through the sand and under the golf ball. For most amateurs, I recommend a sand wedge with 56-58 degrees of loft and 12-14 degrees of bounce.

Like all other shots in golf, the set-up predetermines the script for the swing. What's important in a greenside bunker shot is you need to expose enough loft and bounce on the club face to execute properly. Here are a few set-up characteristics:

• Open club face slightly -- If you were to hold the clubface in front of you where the toe is pointing at 12 o'clock. Rotate the club face to 1 o'clock and then take your grip.

• Set the club shaft perpendicular to leaning slightly away from the target and then stand to the handle. Position the body so the butt-of-the club is pointing roughly to the center of the body. This will help pre-set ball position slightly forward in the stance.

• Bow forward a little bit more than normal from the hips. Don't be afraid to get the upper body more over the ball. This will lower the shaft angle and help the angle of approach into the sand.

• Pre-set the weight slightly into the lead foot. Minimizing weight shift and pre-setting an impact condition with the lower body can only lead to more consistency.

With this set-up, you are in a great position and promoting the right type of swing to execute greenside bunker shots like Els. One of the most common errors in a greenside bunker is swinging the arms and hands back to short and then using them violently on the downswing to get the ball out. What's important to understand is the speed doesn't independently come from the arms and hands but rather the length of the swing and the rate of turn with the torso.

Here are some swing tips to follow once you are set-up properly as defined above:

Backswing
Swing the arms and hands back up to a three-quarter length backswing. When doing this, be sure to keep the weight forward and don't load the upper body around the trail leg. In the full swing, the lead shoulder will move down and across the mid-line of the chest to help create power. In the greenside bunker, try to keep this shoulder turn quite and just let the arms and hands take the club to the top. This will keep you more centered over the ball and help the point of entry into the sand.

Secondly, make sure we are hinging the wrists. It's critical the club head works up immediately in conjunction with the swinging of the arms. This will help keep the loft of the club face exposed and ready for impact.

Downswing
Allow the arms and hand to fall back to impact and support this with the turning of the torso. Again, don't use your arms in a fast and tense motion but rather in a slow and lazy manner which creates a sense of heaviness at impact. Allow the torso to propel the arms, hands and sand through impact and into a relatively full follow-through. Look at your torso as the engine or speedometer of the swing, if you want more speed increase your rate of turn which will in result propel your arms, hands and club faster through impact.

A good analogy is to imagine you are swinging a piece of yarn. To control the yarn on the downswing you wouldn't independently straighten your arms to impact but rather allow it to fall and propel it into extension through the rotation of the torso. Often times, this approach contradicts what one might think needs to happen when the ball comes to rest in the sand.

Like Ernie Els, it's amazing just how smooth you too can be with the swinging of the arms and hands and still get the ball out safely onto the green.

Just Because

Ernie Els is cool.

I mean really, this guy is as cool as it gets and he provided this week a much needed win for the "good guys".

It has been a difficult stretch for Ernie Els both on and off the golf course leading up to this win. With his 7 year old son diagnosed with autism, a knee that is still not 100 percent and a golf game trying to find its way - Els has continued to work hard into his 40s.

Recently, the Els family relocated to West Palm Beach so they could be closer to the best care of autism for their son. Not only is Ernie's son doing much better from this treatment but Ernie himself is doing so much more for all the children that suffer from this same disorder. In 2009, Ernie established the Els for Autism Foundation where he has helped funded an Autism Center of Excellence. This educational center is focused around children from the ages of 3-21 and will help lead the fight against autism.

When watching tournaments each week, I usually don't get into cheering on certain players to the win. However, this week I will admit I was cheering for the "Big Easy" and will continue to be one of his biggest fans for his efforts on the golf course and off.