Els turns back clock with Day 1 showing
20 years after win at Congressional, veteran starts fast
When he has aches and pains in what feels like every part of his body and the numbers on his scorecard are going the wrong way, Ernie Els’ victory at Congressional seems like it was a lifetime ago.
Then there are the days when the shots are falling and the grind is going his way, reminding him of how very good he once was. And still can be. Els marked the 20th anniversary of his second U.S. Open win in most fitting fashion Thursday, with a spot on the early leaderboard at Erin Hills. He is five strokes behind leader Rickie Fowler after a 2-under-par 70 but, with bogeys on his last two holes, knows he has even better golf to play.
“All in all, I’ve got to be happy. You take a 2 under par in the first round of the U.S. Open, you know you’re right there,” Els said. “I know Rickie played a great round, 7 under. But through experience, you know the field is coming toward par. We’ll see where it goes, but I’m happy.”
Anniversaries have a way of bringing life into focus, and that has been true this year for Els. Besides it being the 20th anniversary of his win at Congressional Country Club, it is five years since his second British Open title. That means this was his last time playing both the Masters and the U.S. Open on automatic exemptions.
At 47, he is three years away from the PGA Tour Champions. Yet he has made only five cuts in 15 starts this season and is seek- ing his first Top 25 finish.
“It gets tough,” Els acknowledged. “You go out there and play, and you can’t quite do what you have done or what you’re trying to do because of some kind of little niggle. Yeah, it gets frustrating.
“You’ve got to get better. You keep working on it. I like to compete. It hasn’t been really good the last year or so, but I still want to be out there with the guys and play.”
On days such as Thursday, there’s no reason he can’t.
Els is no longer the longest hitter out there, as he once was. But he still has that sweet, easy swing — there was no mistaking him as he walked up the 18th fairway, leisurely swinging his driver — and he seems to have solved the putting woes that have plagued him in recent years.
His four birdies on the front nine were impressive. But even more so was the par he scratched out on the par-3 13th. His 36-foot birdie putt ran 7 feet past the hole, but Els saved par.
“You find if you get on a roll, you’ve got to really try and capitalize on that,” he said. “Then when it gets kind of tough, you’ve got to kind of grind it out. Seems like my back nine, I had to do a lot of grinding. When you make those par putts, they almost feel as good as a birdie putt.”
Els has always been a fan favorite, and he was showered with affection throughout his round. There were encouraging shouts of “Let’s go Ernie!” after good shots and when he walked to the tee. Several fans called out, “Nice job, Ernie!” as he made his way to scoring after the round, and Els responded by flashing that familiar wide smile.
It’s far too early in the tournament to predict where Els will wind up or whether he’ll do well enough to extend his runs at the Masters or the U.S. Open. And, to be honest, that’s not where his focus is.
Before his round Thursday, Els’ father sent him a photo of that wonderful day at Congressional, he and wife Liezl posing with his parents and the U.S. Open trophy.
“We both said it’s crazy that 20 years has gone so quickly,” Els said. “It’s amazing, and I’m just blessed to still be playing the game. Nice to still compete.”
Even better to find himself in contention again after all these years.