Ernie Els hadn’t even dropped his full weight into the leather chair in Augusta National interview room before he sat the place ablaze with laughter.
“Haven’t been in here for a while,” he said with a wide grin.
Yes, it has been a long time since anybody had much to ask Els after one of his Masters’ round. He has infamously never won here despite many close calls from 2000 to 2004 and has missed four cuts and one tournament altogether without finishing better than 13th since.
But there the 45-year-old South African was, right at the top of the leaderboard after the first round of the 79th Masters. He was in a four-way tie for second at 5-under-par, and only a bogey on the 18th hole kept him from being there by himself.
Here’s some of what Els had to say after his round.
On the sudden surge of his game. …
“I just felt comfortable. I felt at ease for some reason. I felt patient. I’ve been working on some different shots on my driver. I’m getting a little on now, so I’ve been using we have always been using a very heavy shaft, but I went with a lighter shaft. Been trying that for the last couple of months, and I think I’ve finally obviously found something nice, because I drove it nicely yesterday in practice and started feeling some good momentum.”
On his seemingly more-relaxed demeanor …
“You know, for one thing, for so many years there, I didn’t play the Par 3, and the last couple years, I started playing the Par 3 again. Liezl, my wife, Samantha, my daughter, and Ben, they came up for a couple of days. There’s definitely a different kind of mindset in the whole family coming up here. It’s more of an enjoyment. We kind of are running out of time a little bit here, so we are really trying to enjoy what we’ve got left out here. You know, it’s been 21 years coming to Augusta, it’s been unbelievable, but nothing lasts forever.”
On the prospect of winning another major as an over-40 golfer (he won the 2012 British Open) …
“Well, that’s the plan (laughter). So we’ll see what happens. I think it’s well documented that I still feel like I get something out of (winning). But, you know, these guys are good. I’ve got a lot of talent, but you’ve got to get the most out of it now, we’re running out of time. But I’ll be up for it.”
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