Editor's note: Ernie Els is writing a blog for PGATOUR.COM in 2013 and this is his latest installment. For more information about the World Golf Hall of Famer, visit www.ernieels.com.

I’m genuinely starting to feel good about my game and things are heading in the right direction, but Pete Dye’s Stadium Course has a way of revealing exactly where you’re at and, to be honest, I’m not quite there yet. It’s a tough track, especially playing hard and bouncy as it did last week, and it has its own little quirks. Since my last top-10 back in 2008 I haven’t got to grips with the course at all and this was another disappointing trip here for me.

I’d say this golf course tests every department of your game perhaps more than almost any other that we play on the PGA TOUR aside from majors. You have to drive it well and hit your irons in the correct spots. Above all, though, I think you have to come in here with a lot of confidence and I’m not quite where I need to be. I’ve just got to keep working hard and trust that my game, and the results, will come to me. Something I’ve learnt in my 20-plus years as a TOUR professional is that you’ve got to have patience with this game.

Anyway, we have a week off now. We’ve got a sponsor’s golf day in Orlando this Monday for SAP, which involves golf and a lunch. The rest of this week is free, but I’m going to stay busy. I’ll work on my fitness as I always do whenever we’re here at the house and also make the most of the wonderful Bear’s Club practice facilities. That’s what is so great about living here; the weather is perfect and everything I need is literally on my doorstep.

Then next Monday I’ll head over to London for my next tournament, the BMW PGA Championship at Wentworth. There’ll be more on that in my next report.

Bye for now.

Editor's note: Ernie Els is writing a blog for PGATOUR.COM in 2013 and this is his most recent installment. For more information on the World Golf Hall of Famer, visit www.ernieels.com.

I had a really good time in Indonesia last week and I want to thank everyone at the tournament, the sponsors and the fans for making me feel so welcome. The hospitality was amazing and it was a pleasure to be a part of it. As Open champion I like to play around the world and coming to Asia was a good call for me. A win would have been fantastic, but second place is not that bad, either. This performance has helped boost my confidence and it shows me I’m going in the right direction. I’m starting to feel really good about my game now.

So let me talk you through the week. On Thursday I played nicely and really my score should have been better than 68, but 4-under par is a nice start to any tournament and on balance I was pretty satisfied with that. Friday was the one round of the week where I struggled a little bit and I think maybe a bit of jet lag had kicked in. My game was there; I just lacked a bit of energy and I definitely needed to get sharper mentally.

Saturday was a better day all round. My body felt good and my concentration was a step up from the previous couple of days. I was comfortable with my swing and only missed one green all day. Again, I didn’t make as many putts as I could have, but I hung in there and in the end I grinded out a 68. Maybe I should have gone very low, but still I was right there in with a chance. The final day was looking interesting, with a bunch of players all in the mix.

I wasn’t quite at my best on Sunday, especially in those first four or five holes where I was really slow to get going, but my attitude was good. I played hard and fought hard and right there at the end I had a sniff of a chance to get myself into a playoff. But my hat’s off to Bernd Wiesberger. I played with him the first two rounds and then again in the final round and I think he played better than all of us. Congratulations to him; he deserved this win.

This week I’m back on the PGA TOUR for THE Players Championship, which is about as big as it gets outside of a major or World Golf Championships event. I can hardly believe it but this will be my 20th appearance in this event and I have only four top-10s to show for it. It’s hard to put my finger on a reason for that. It’s a wonderful golf course but there is something about it that I often can’t seem to get to grips with. Still, I always look forward to teeing it up here. There is obviously a really strong field and it has that buzz of something a little bit special.

Pete Dye’s Stadium Course is one of the best-known layouts on the PGA TOUR and there is very little margin for error on a lot of the holes. You need to be patient and there are moments when you need to play the percentages and make par your friend. The key I think is you have to hit it in the fairways. In fact, when I look back at the times I’ve struggled here it is when I haven’t driven the ball well enough. My long game feels in good shape, though, and if I can get the putter going we might set the record straight this week. That would be nice!

I’ll write again soon and tell you all about it.

Click here to learn more about Els's quest to promote Autism awareness.

Editor's note: Ernie Els is writing a blog for PGATOUR.COM in 2013 and this is his latest installment. For more information on the World Golf Hall of Famer, visit www.ernieels.com.

I really enjoyed being back in the Big Easy last week for the Zurich Classic. As with the previous year, the vibe here is good and the galleries are fantastic. It’s a great tournament and a wonderful golf course.

For Thursday’s first round we had beautiful conditions for golf and I played nicely to shoot a bogey-free round of 67, including five birdies. I felt very comfortable out there and it was just the kind of round I’ve been searching for these past few months. To start the tournament that way was really pleasing.

On Friday I had a couple of bad holes in the middle of my round, but I fought hard all day and I stuck in there and stayed patient. Holing an 18-footer for birdie on the last to shoot 69 made my lunch taste better, that’s for sure, and I was feeling very upbeat about the weekend. I like this golf course, it suits my eye, and obviously I played well here last year and almost won the tournament.

On reflection I feel like my game plan for the weekend was solid so I’m slightly disappointed that I wasn’t able to make more of my opportunities, because for the most part I hit the ball beautifully. I just hit a couple of loose shots at the wrong time. Without those, I’d have been right up there in the mix. Even so, 12-under par and tied-15th gives me plenty of encouragement going forward.

On a separate note this was the final tournament in Autism Awareness Month on the PGA TOUR and I want to thank all the players, the fans, tournament sponsors, officials and media who made the effort to jump on board and help us promote this worthy cause. Liezl and I really appreciate the support.

Anyway, moving on I didn’t have much time between packing my bags in New Orleans and jumping on a plane to Hong Kong from where it will then be onwards to Jakarta for this week’s CIMB Niaga Indonesian Masters. It should be a very interesting week. I’ve played on the Asia Tour quite a bit in the last few years and I always enjoy my time in this part of the world.

This week’s tournament may have a few established names in the field, but golf is growing fast in Asia and there is some serious homegrown talent teeing it up here every week. These guys can play so it’s not necessary nailed-on that the winner will come out of the so-called star player groups. We’ll see.

For me, I’ve put a lot of work into my game recently and it’s definitely starting to pay off. Physically everything feels very good, I just need to get myself in a slightly better mindset and cut out the occasional bad hole and basically clean-up my card some days. To be honest, we’re really close.

Okay, that’s it for this week’s report. I’ll write again very soon.

By Brian Allee-Walsh, PGATOUR.com Correspondent 

AVONDALE, La. -- Dropping a 14-foot birdie putt on his finishing hole Friday made lunch much more enjoyable for Ernie Els at the Zurich Classic of New Orleans.

It completed a round of 3-under 69 and left him lurking four shots off the lead held by Lucas Glover at 12-under 132.

Els' birdie at No. 9, a 179-yard par 3, was his sixth of the round.

"Yeah, it will help, especially after missing a 3-footer on 8,'' Els said. "I kind of fought hard all day. I had a couple really bad holes in the middle of my round. But I tried to stick in there, and obviously that one on my 18th hole will bring us back.''

Els made the turn at 3-under for his round before encountering trouble on the front nine (his back side). He posted bogeys at Nos. 1, 3 and 6 but closed with birdies on Nos. 7 and 9 to stay in contention.

Last year in New Orleans, Els lost to Jason Dufner on the second hole of a playoff.

"I like the course,'' said Els, who sandwiched missed cuts at the Arnold Palmer Invitational presented by MasterCard and RBC Heritage around a T13 at the Masters. "I obviously played well here last year, and I'm just trying to set that same gameplan and really wait for the course to come to me.''

Meanwhile, Zurich Classic officials have designated Saturday as "Blue Out'' day as part of Autism Awareness month. Players and fans are encouraged to wear blue to the event and join the World Golf Hall of Famer and four-time major champion’s foundation "Els for Autism,'' in showing support for those affected by autism spectrum disorders.

"Since Leizl and I announced that our son Ben was touched by autism five years ago, we have been blown away by the support we have received, especially from the golf community,'' he said. "We are extremely touched by this support from the Zurich Classic whose team is helping our efforts to use golf as a platform to shine a light on Autism.''

Ernie Els finished second at the Zurich Classic of New Orleans last year.

Editor's note: Ernie Els is writing a blog for PGATOUR.COM in 2013 and this is his latest installment. For more information on the World Golf Hall of Famer, visit www.ernieels.com.

Obviously, it was extremely disappointing to miss the cut at Hilton Head. It’s one of my favorite weeks of the year and also with it being sponsored by RBC, a company for which I’m proud to be an ambassador, you can’t help but feel an added responsibility to put on a good show. I actually felt pretty good coming in here after a final-round 69 at Augusta, but at Hilton Head I really never got anything going. It was one of those weeks.

However, on behalf of Liezl, the Els for Autism Foundation and myself, I want to thank the RBC team and everyone who supported us in our campaign to promote autism awareness. As you may know, April is Autism Awareness Month and we have a series of initiatives taking place right across America.

Among them we’ve asked players to wear blue on designated days at tournaments during the month of April – that’s the Valero Texas Open, The Masters, RBC Heritage and finally this week’s Zurich Classic of New Orleans. Friday was ‘Blue Day’ last week in Hilton Head and it is again in New Orleans this week. The players have been great and Liezl and I are so grateful for the extent to which everyone has jumped on board with this campaign and to help support Els for Autism and the wider autism community.

Title sponsor Zurich has very generously pre-purchased some blue autism awareness pins for its tournament volunteers and corporate guests. These pins are also available to purchase in the merchandise tent throughout the week.

Golf wise I’m very much looking forward to my week in New Orleans. In 2012 I was playing this event for the first time in 10 years and had a strong week, with four nice rounds in the 60s, and in the end was one putt away from winning the tournament. It was my first time playing Pete Dye’s TPC Louisiana course and I was impressed – straight away it seemed to fit my eye.

Also, I loved the whole New Orleans vibe and the support from the galleries was fantastic. I had a lot of fun out there. In fact I’ll be happy to repeat every aspect of last year’s tournament…but just go one better with the end result. That would be perfect. I’ll write again next week and tell you all about it.

Bye for now.

By Brian Wacker, PGATOUR.COM

HILTON HEAD ISLAND, S.C. -- Ernie Els can't tell you what he said to good friend and newly minted Masters champion Adam Scott on Sunday night.

"We had quite a few beers, both of us," Els said with a huge smile. "You can imagine what we said. I couldn't say (what), not in proper English.

"He's very delighted, I can promise you, that he got a Green Jacket and I was delighted for him. It was quite a good conversation."

Nine months ago, it was a different conversation that shed light on just how close the South African and Australian are to one another.

"I really feel for my buddy, Scotty, I really do," Els said after watching Scott bogey the final four holes at Royal Lytham & St. Annes to hand the claret jug to him. "I've been there before. I've blown majors before and golf tournaments before, and I just hope he doesn't take it as hard as I did."

Sunday, Scott became the first Australian to win the Green Jacket, beating Angel Cabrera, another good friend of Els', in a memorable playoff.

"Everyone is so happy that Scotty won," said Jason Day, who was in contention as well until bogeying two of his final three holes. "It's hard to not be happy for the guy because he's so nice."

Day and Scott traded texts that night.

"He texted me and said, 'I know you're disappointed, but you showed a lot of class,'" Day said. "I texted him back and said, 'I'm glad it was you to be the first. It goes down in history forever, mate.' Being the first Australian to win the Masters does go down in history, and that's got to feel good for him."

It also felt good for Els, who made a trip to Augusta National with Scott two weeks prior to the tournament. The two also played two practice rounds together, along with Louis Oosthuizen, with Scott getting in Els' pocket.

"But being the veteran I am, I made quite a bit of money the second day back from them," Els said. "So we almost came out square."

Games aside, Els could see how well Scott was hitting the ball. He also noticed a quiet confidence in the Aussie.

"I've made a point of really getting on him a little bit, you know, and keeping him going forward," Els said. "We played a lot of golf and talked quite a bit. He really was motivated for it.

"He definitely was striking the ball really well. He was in a very nice, loose, mood. He wasn't too tight. I really felt he was going to play well."

Editor's note: Ernie Els is writing a blog for PGATOUR.COM in 2013 and this is his latest installment. For more information on the World Golf Hall of Famer, visit www.ernieels.com.

It was so great being back at the Masters again and, to be honest, it means the world to me that I'm here for the next four years as well. Also I could not be happier for my buddy Adam Scott. I said after Lytham that he'd win majors and he didn't waste much time doing that!

Personally, I would love to have arrived at Augusta with a bit more game and in the practice rounds I definitely didn't feel quite as sharp as I wanted to be, but I was excited about the challenge. There's nothing quite like this place. It tests every single part of your game.

The first couple of days it was a case of fighting hard in tough conditions and a strong finish on Friday, when I played the final four holes in 3-under par, got me well inside the cut line. I hadn’t yet hit my stride – not properly – but I was here for the weekend so that was good.

In the third round conditions got tougher, which you kind of expect here. The wind was only 6 or 7 miles an hour but the greens were firmer than in the first couple of rounds and it was difficult to get at a lot of the pins. I’m not surprised that only seven players broke 70. I had a decent round going for a while and after 12 holes I was looking to finish under par. A poor finish killed me, though. Those last four holes effectively spoiled my chances of winning. 

I felt like I had a low number in me, though, so my goal on Sunday was to go out there and enjoy myself. I played nicely again and it was satisfying to break 70. It’s a while since I’ve done that at Augusta and it put me just on the fringes of the top 10. Overall I’d say my Masters week was a reflection of my year so far – plenty of good golf, but just wasn’t able to put a decent run of scoring together. I really do feel like I’m heading in the right direction, though.

Anyway, I left Augusta on Sunday afternoon and headed over to Hilton Head to get ready for this week’s RBC Heritage. This is one of the great tournament venues in golf, with a wonderful golf course and a great history. Royal Bank of Canada, a company for which I’m proud to be an ambassador, became the sponsor last year and I’ve got to know the guys pretty well. They do a fantastic job in golf and I’m really pleased to say that in recent years they have also shown great commitment in their support of Els for Autism.

This week they’re really stepping it up, as well. The tournament organizers have teamed up with our team at Els for Autism on a number of initiatives to raise awareness of autism and raise funds to help build the Els Center of Excellence. In addition, RBC Heritage has designated Friday as the tournament’s Autism Awareness Day and players, fans and media are being encouraged to wear blue in order to indicate their support for those affected by autism spectrum disorders. I’ve even turned my traditional lion headcover blue!

Honestly, since Liezl and I announced that our son Ben was touched by autism five years ago we have been blown away by the support we have received, especially from the golf community. We are extremely touched by this latest show of support from the RBC Heritage, whose team is throughout April helping our efforts to use golf as a platform to raise awareness of the disorder and promote the importance of early detection. The RBC Heritage has always been one of my favorite stops on the PGA TOUR and one that I always try to bring the whole family to. This year I think it’s going to be even more special.

I love this golf course, as well. This is a shot-maker’s course. You need to work your golf ball to score well and, when you miss one of those small greens, you need a deft touch to give yourself a chance of getting up and down. That’s always been a strong part of my game, which I guess is one of the reasons I’ve had so many top-10 finishes in this tournament. Still searching for my first win here, though, and obviously I’d love that to happen this week.

I’ll write again soon and tell you all about it.

I don’t know if this year’s Masters feels extra special having missed it last year. Perhaps a little bit. It definitely feels good to be back, though. I’m not upset about what happened last year. I’m just excited like any other player to be here again – this is my 19th career appearance – and like any other player I want to have some game and feel like I have a chance to compete and win.
 
My record in the majors over the last 20 years is pretty good and in the Masters I’ve finished second twice and had a bunch of top-10s. Looking back I maybe should have won this tournament, but obviously it hasn’t happened and since 2004 this beautiful place hasn’t been good for me. I think mentally the last six or seven times I’ve played here I was putting too much pressure on myself to win this thing, not just in the tournament but in the build-up, too.

This year I definitely sense in myself a slightly different, more relaxed mindset. Playing in the Chiangmai Golf Classic in Thailand a couple of weeks before Augusta was a good move. It removed me somewhat from the hype of pre-Masters time and I also felt like I was doing my bit to help spread the game into new territories. As Open champion I do feel a responsibility to do that.

And now that I’ve arrived at Augusta I want to try to enjoy it more. After missing out last year it does in some ways feel like a new beginning. That drive down Magnolia Lane is special. I’ve been coming here almost 20 years and I still get that buzz. A few years ago I played with Gary Player in his 50th Masters and he said to me that it still hadn’t worn off! It’s that kind of place.

And you could never lose the thrill of teeing it up on this magnificent golf course. Everything you’ve seen on television is magnified a hundred times. The colors, the atmosphere and the sheer beauty of this place – it’s a wonderful assault on the senses. Augusta is unique, a total one-off.

My game’s been slow to take off this season, but in recent weeks there have been signs that it is gathering momentum. Augusta is the ultimate test of your game, so I know that I have to step it up. I’m excited about the challenge. The long putter is in my bag this week for the last time in a major. After the Masters I’ll start using the short putter a lot more regularly.

One final piece of news, we’re proud that Breitling has this week announced the release of the Els for Autism Breitling Limited Edition Chronograph timepiece in honour of Autism Awareness Month this April.

I signed with Breitling only a few months ago and already they have shown their support for Els for Autism and their dedication to helping make a difference. This limited edition watch is a touching representation of their support. Only 88 numbered watches will be produced, in reference to the statistic that autism affects 1 in 88 children, and 20 percent of the proceeds from the sale will be donated to the Els for Autism Foundation.

Okay, that’s it for now.

EDITOR'S NOTE: Ernie Els is writing a weekly blog for PGATOUR.COM in 2013 and this is his most recent installment. For more information on the World Golf Hall of Famer, visit www.ernieels.com.

Tuesday (April 2) is the sixth World Autism Awareness Day and all around the world there will be autism organizations hosting special fund-raising and awareness-raising events. For us, today is a doubly significant day in the sense that it also marks the start of this year’s Els for Autism Golf Challenge with our first regional qualifier of the year at Floridian Golf Club. The timing is perfect.

In fact, throughout April we are supporting Autism Awareness with a series of initiatives right across America. Among them we asked PGA TOUR players to support autism and spread awareness by wearing blue every Saturday at tournaments during the month of April – that’s the Valero Texas Open, The Masters, RBC Heritage and Zurich Classic of New Orleans. During these weeks you’ll also see players wearing a special pin-badge, which we created especially for this campaign.

Anyway, I’m recently back from Thailand having competed in last week’s first ever Chiangmai Golf Classic. I must say it was a great experience for me. The people are just wonderful and the golf course was in superb condition. I just wish I could have made a few more birdies! Seriously, though, I took a lot of positives away with me. Everything is kind of in place; I’m just searching for that little bit of confidence and momentum in my game.

I feel like I’m slowly getting there, though. We played the first three rounds with the short putter and on the whole I was pleased with the outcome. Thursday was a comfortable round of golf, bogey free with three birdies, and I made some good putts out there. Friday I had a bad start, which cost me, but Saturday was better in every department. I tried to take an aggressive mindset into the day and really I’d say 66 was about the highest number I could have shot. It was my lowest round of the year and that was encouraging.

For Sunday’s final round I decided to switch back to the long putter, not because I was dissatisfied with how I’d putted in the first three rounds, but simply that this was my last competitive round before the Masters and mentally I’d already decided to use the long putter at Augusta. I wanted to feel a bit of pressure with it. I played well, but didn’t get much out of my round, and finished on 12-under par for tied-14th. So an enjoyable week and, all in all, I’m very glad I made the decision to go there and play. I’m hitting it nice again.

Bye for now.

Scoring is always very tough at Bay Hill – it’s that kind of golf course – and we had some challenging conditions this year. The wind was blowing hard on day one and it was also quite cool, then it rained on Friday, but there was still a score out there. It’s not acceptable to me to shoot a pair of 75s and miss the cut.

So far this year I’ve played some decent golf in parts, but I’m not quite there on the consistency front. All you can do is keep working hard, though. As we saw last year, your fortunes can change quickly in this game.
 
On Sunday I set out from Florida to Thailand for this week’s inaugural Chiangmai Golf Classic presented by PTT. I hear that the venue for this tournament, the Alpine Golf Resort, is really beautiful. Looking back I’ve had great experiences when visiting Thailand and especially enjoyed the warm hospitality of the Thai people and their wonderful cuisine. I’m sure the local golf fans will come out and support what is a landmark event for golf in Northern Thailand. As Open champion I’m excited to be a part of it and I look forward to sharing some of my experiences with you.

After this tournament finishes I have an SAP function in New York, including tickets to see the Yankees play the Red Sox on the opening game of the season. Then it’s back to Florida to work on my game at the Bear’s Club and get ready for a return to Augusta the following week. I can’t wait to get back there again.

Bye for now.