Els’ resurrection came after period of ‘agony’
Golfer reveals belly putter was what saved career
For Ernie Els, it was simple. Go with the devil or quit. And thank God he chose the former, say all we romantics who will relish watching the sweetest motion in golf defend the Open title next week at the Muirfield course where he lifted his first Claret Jug.
The game has never before known how near the muchloved South African came to retiring after his desultory 2011 season. But in a recent sit-down, he and his wife explained what saved him as a sportsman. It was the notorious belly-putter, the scourge of the traditionalists, a method of putting that Els, himself, long disparaged as “cheating.”
“I remember missing the last three cuts in the majors,” Els said. “And it was purely on the greens. I did get close to saying ‘ screw it’. There’s nothing like going through agony with the putter. Look at so many of the great players who have stopped playing because of it: Peter Alliss, Johnny Miller, Ben Hogan, almost ... I love this game so much and for me to go to anchored putting was the only way out. Ask Liezl about it.”
On cue, Mrs. Els winced as she recalled the agonizing. At the time, Els flippantly dismissed the belly version in the bag by saying: “As long as it’s legal, I’ll cheat like the rest of them.” But only those closest to him knew the real truth.
“People don’t realize the agony he went through before going to the long putter,” she said. “They thought it was an automatic thing for him to do — it was anything but. It should have told everyone how badly he was suffering and how close he’d come to packing up. He never wanted to use that putter — it was the absolute last resort. It showed how much he loved the game and that he wasn’t ready to give it up.”
The rest of the story now resides in blessed golf folklore. Els’s stock had fallen so far he missed last year’s Masters, but then after contending at the U.S. Open, he came from seven behind Adam Scott on Royal Lytham’s inward half to claim his second Open, 11 years after the first. He may have been forced to rely on a crutch to rescale the mountain, but only the most ardent of purists would deny him.
Since then, the game’s two governing bodies have decided that from 2016, “anchoring” will be banned. Even though Els is in the opposing camp deep down, he agrees with the impending law change. “I am with the ruling bodies going forward,” he said. “They feel they should have done it before and now they have and it’s probably right, even though it’s tough for people like myself, Adam (Scott), Keegan (Bradley) and the others who have had success with it.
“I’ve learned my lesson, saying what I did about it.”
What was that lesson? “It was, ‘ Watch what you say in this game, don’t ever think you’re too big.’”
The point is that golf has a habit of beating up even some of its biggest names
‘People don’t realize the agony he went through before going to the long putter. They thought it was an automatic thing for him to do — it was anything but.’
LIEZL ELS
Wife of Ernie Els
and when the survival instinct takes over each and every weapon seems appropriate. It is easy for outsiders to scoff and moan, but golf is a sport like no other. It is generous in affording longevity, but so cruel in becoming ever more maddening. At 43, Els is one of the few to come out the other side.
“So many have given the game up and that’s why are there so many analysts out there,” Els said. “They loved the game, still do, but reached a point where they just said: screw it. Mentally and physically, the despair of it can get to you and so you turn to something else. It looks like I will be lucky and that it will be time that stops me. I have gone through my little battle. But it is a crazy game.
“Don’t get me wrong, it’s wonderful in many ways. If I wasn’t a golfer I’d probably be mowing lawns. But it’s such a sacrifice — the family. I’ve been living outside South Africa more than half my life, it’s as hard as you can do, even if the rewards are unbelievable.
“It’s hard to explain to the man in the street, but disappointments are as brutal as you will find because it’s in the public eye.
“I’ve been exposed in front of millions, with my putting problems,” he said.