Second straight victory puts Els in favorite role at Masters

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This is the second time Ernie Els has won Arnold Palmer's tournament at Bay Hill. The first was in 1998.

ORLANDO -- He thought about the Masters as he stood on the 18th tee at Bay Hill early Monday afternoon with a two-stroke lead.

"It's exactly the same shot," Ernie Els would later explain. "I had to hit a little fade and I opened up my body nicely and hit a perfect fade down there. I was just trying to imagine that I had to hit this shot at Augusta."

The affable South African will get that chance in another week, and he'll head to the Masters as the favorite now after Monday's win at the Arnold Palmer Invitational presented by MasterCard.

Yes, Tiger Woods will be there as he ends five months of seclusion in the wake of that Thanksgiving car accident and subsequent admissions of infidelity. But no one knows how the world No. 1 will perform after such a long layoff.

Els, on the other hand, is playing as well as he has in years.

The hard-fought and rain-delayed victory at Bay Hill was his second straight in 2010 and the 18th of his PGA TOUR career. Els has been exceedingly consistent all year, too -- in seven starts, he has five top-10s and only once has finished lower than 17th.

"I want to make this a special year, especially after these two wins," he acknowledged. "But I still have a lot of work left and there are a lot of majors left, and that's going to be fun now."

The Big Easy has had success at Augusta National with six top-10s -- and some heartbreak, too. Phil Mickelson birdied the 72nd hole to beat him by a shot in 2004 and Vijay Singh won by three with a birdie there, as well.

But don't ask the three-time major champion if the Masters owes him one.

"I think I'll jinx myself saying that,'" Els said. "But I would say this: I know the history of Augusta pretty well, and there's been a lot of nice stories.

"There's been a lot of cruel ones, thinking of (Tom) Weiskopf and (Greg) Norman and myself, but there's also been some really great ones, so we still are hoping for the great one."

Els planned to head home to West Palm Beach to see his family on Monday night. Then he'll honor his commitment to play in the Shell Houston Open -- but not before a quick trip up to Augusta National on Tuesday so Dan Quinn, who splits time with Ricci Roberts on his bag, can see the course.

"If I'm into contention (at Houston), it will be great, and if I'm not, that's also fine," Els said. "I just want to have a nice, easy week, play golf, and get ready for Augusta."

Els knows some will question his decision to use Quinn, a former NHL player and accomplished golfer who has won events on the celebrity tour, at the Masters. After all, Roberts has been on Els' bag for these last two victories.

The Big Easy, though, likes the enthusiasm Quinn will bring with him inside the ropes at Augusta National. And it's not like Els doesn't know the course after 16 straight Masters starts.

"I don't think anybody can tell me anything more about Augusta than I already know," he said

Els, who leads the FedExCup and ranks No. 1 in scoring on TOUR with an average of 68.88, says the Masters is always at the front of his mind this time of year. Just as he was thinking about it on the 18th tee at Bay Hill on Monday with another tournament on the line.

"Practice shots, you try and get a draw going with your driver, and high shots with your irons and you try and have your short game very sharp," Els said. "That's what I've been doing, and obviously I haven't won for such a long time, and now to be able to feel like I can tee it up and play with these boys, it feels good."

Els' last two victories have come in very different manners. He pulled away on the back nine to beat his protégé, Charl Schwartzel, at the World Golf Championships-CA Championship and he hung on Monday at Bay Hill.

To compound the challenge, Els had to go home Sunday night and think about the way he squandered what had been a five-stroke lead with a double bogey and bogey before the horn sounded to halt play.

Els says he wasn't the Big Easy Sunday night, but he's certainly proven he's back in form over the last few weeks.

"I think if you're a betting man, you would have got really good odds anywhere in the world that Ernie Els would win two tournaments in a row,'" he said. "I know a lot of guys basically have written me off, and a lot of guys probably said it was a fluke in Miami. I

"It was hard work this week, but you know, two wins is definitely special. ... It can be one of the toughest games, cruelest games in the world, and then you sit here, it's one of the nicest games."