The long, lopsided history of Woods and Els
Two friends will be captains of Presidents Cup in ‘19
ORLANDO, FLA. » Tiger Woods spoke with sentiment and respect until a twist at the end.
Woods hit safely onto the green during the opening round of the 2010 HSBC Champions in Shanghai, stepped to the side and looked over at Ernie Els shifting his hips to settle that 6-foot-4 frame over his shot.
“You know, I’ve probably been around this guy longer than anyone on tour,” Woods said that day, perhaps reminiscing about his final major as an amateur, the 1996 British Open at Royal Lytham & St. Annes, when he sought out Els for advice on whether to turn pro.
“And after all these years,” Woods said with a hint of a smile, “you still forget just how (expletive) big he is.”
They both are giants for what they’ve done for their sport. Their final act will be as captains of the Presidents Cup in 2019 at Royal Melbourne.
Els speaks as eloquently about Woods as anyone. He is always honest and usually right.
He just couldn’t keep up with Woods, which was no shame. No else could, either. It was 20 years ago this week at Bay Hill when the potential for a rivalry still existed.
Woods staged the largest comeback of his career in early 1998 at the Johnnie Walker Championship in Thailand. Starting the final round eight shots behind Els, he went out well before the last groups and
Tiger Woods tees off on the 16th hole during the final round of the Valspar Championship golf tournament Sunday in Palm Harbor, Fla.
posted a 65, and then he beat Els on the second hole of a playoff.
A month later at Bay Hill, the South African had what he described as his “day in the sun.”
Because of rain delays, the final 36 holes were held on Sunday. Woods and Davis Love III were tied for the lead, joined in the final group by Els, who was two shots behind. Els got his revenge with a 65 in the morning, and he wound up beating Woods by 10 shots and Love by 11.
That was as close as Els and Woods got as rivals.
Els has finished runnerup to Woods seven times, the most of any player. That includes four times in 2000, two of them majors, three of those tournaments by a combined 28 shots.
It started with that titanic playoff at Kapalua when they matched eagles on the 72nd hole, birdies on the first playoff hole, and Woods won with a 35foot putt downhill, into the grain with about 2 feet of break. Els also was runnerup by five shots at the Memorial, 15 shots at the U.S. Open and eight shots at the British Open.
It was at Kapalua where Els uttered his most famous line about Woods: “He’s 24. He’s probably going to be bigger than Elvis when he gets into his 40s.”
So it’s the Big Easy and Elvis as captains for the next Presidents Cup, a most excellent fit.
In the short history of this event, no two players delivered more exquisite drama than Woods and Els in 2003 at Fancourt in South Africa.
Their names were placed in an envelope early Sunday in case of a tie, and when the matches were 1717, Woods and Els faced off in sudden death. With every putt, all they could see was a cluster of blue shirts (International) and red shirts (U.S.) as the entire teams surrounded every green.
Els had to make a 12-foot putt on No. 1, the second extra hole, to extend the playoff. On the next hole, it was so dark they could barely see the green 231 yards away. Woods made a double-breaking 15-foot par putt, a tough one to make even in daylight. Els felt his legs shaking for the first time over a putt, yet he still managed to make his 6-footer to halve the hole.
Moments later, the Presidents Cup was declared a tie. Both were asked if that was as much pressure as they had ever faced.
“I’d like to hear what Tiger says first,” Els said with a smile.
“Man, that was one of the most nerve-wracking moments I’ve ever had in golf,” Woods replied.
This will be Woods’ first time as a captain. This might be Els’ last chance for a victory over him.
On the Sunday before Els won his last major in 2012, he thought back to his first trip to Lytham in 1996. Els chipped away at an eightshot deficit against Tom Lehman until being slowed by two late bogeys that he knew would cost him.
He was in the clubhouse, needing Lehman to drop two shots to have a chance. Before long, Els had company.
Woods, who shot 66 in the second round and tied for 22nd as a 20-year-old amateur, joined him at the table and began asking for advice on turning pro.
“He was trying to figure out his future, and I was trying to figure out if the guy was going to make double bogey or not,” Els said. “Tom made par and Tiger turned pro. I was (cooked) either way.” And then he laughed. With 57 victories and 54 runner-up finishes worldwide — seven of them to Woods — that easy smile is never far away.
Astros’ Correa skipped White House visit to aid Puerto Rico
WEST PALM BEACH, FLA. » Carlos Correa skipped the Houston Astros’ visit to the White House to help arrange for more relief supplies for shipment to hurricane-ravaged Puerto Rico, where he grew up.
Correa and closer Ken Giles did not attend Monday’s ceremony in Washington, D.C., that honored the Astros’ 2017 World Series title. The Astros said Giles had a family commitment.
“It was not politics or anything,” Correa said. “It was just that the day off was perfect to be able to provide some help for the people in Puerto Rico in need.”
Puerto Rico was damaged in September by Hurricane Maria. With assistance, Correa helped send a plane of supplies to Puerto Rico in October.
“I don’t only represent the Astros, I don’t only represent my family, but I also represent the American citizens that are living in Puerto Rico,” Correa said.
NFL promotes Maryann Turcke to COO
NEW YORK » The NFL has promoted Maryann Turcke to chief operating officer, making her the highest-ranking woman at the league offices.
Turcke has overseen NFL Network in the last year. She replaces Tod Leiweke, who has left the league after three years in the job.
Turcke will lead the marketing, communications, human resources, international and events and technology departments.
“Since joining NFL Media last year, Maryann has distinguished herself by leading NFL Network to a recordsetting year,” said Roger Goodell. “We look forward to Maryann building upon this success, and her previous achievements as president of Bell Media, as she steps into this larger role. I expect her leadership, vision and corporate governance experience to help evolve our organization and take it to a higher level.”
Halep wins, U.S. teen Anisimova’s run ends at Indian Wells
INDIAN WELLS » Simona Halep is on track to retain her No. 1 world ranking after defeating Wang Qiang of China 7-5, 6-1 in the fourth round of the BNP Paribas Open.
Halep improved to 17-1 this year and needs only to reach the final to stay at the top. If not, Caroline Wozniacki, who beat Halep in the Australian Open final, could replace her if the Dane wins the title. Halep and Wozniacki are the only former Indian Wells winners left in the women’s draw.
Next up for Halep is Petra Martic of Croatia, who beat Marketa Vondrousova 6-3, 7-6 (4) on Tuesday.
American teenager Amanda Anisimova’s run of success ended in a 6-1, 7-6 (2) loss to No. 5 seed Karolina Pliskova of the Czech Republic.
Anisimova, a 16-year-old, won her first three WTA Tour matches at Indian Wells, beating Pauline Parmentier, No. 23 seed Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova and two-time Wimbledon winner Petra Kvitova without dropping a set.
Tebow sent to Minor League camp by Mets
PORT ST. LUCIE, FLA. » Tim Tebow was reassigned by the New York Mets to their minor league camp on Tuesday after he went 0 for 4 with four strikeouts in an exhibition against the Houston Astros.
The former NFL quarterback and 2007 Heisman Trophy winner hit .056 (1 for 18) with 11 strikeouts in seven big league exhibition games.