JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Thirty years ago, Ernie Els won the first of his four major championships when he stunned the world by winning the U.S. Open at Oakmont, at the age of 24.
Now at 54, Els said he still retains the desire to compete and win that he did as a youngster from South Africa beating back the best in golf on that brutally hot week in Western Pennsylvania.
“I’m having a great time,” Els said just before his pro-am on Thursday at the Timuquana Country Club, the site of this week’s Constellation Furyk & Friends.
“I’m playing against guys I used to play with, even in amateur and junior golf, so we’ve been competing against other since we started,” he added. “It’s still competitive. We want to play our best and be sharp. We still want to play our best … depending on how the body feels.”
Els will hit a milestone this week. When he tees off on Friday he will make his 100th PGA Tour Champions start. He’s making his 19th start of this season and is the leader on the Charles Schwab Cup money list with $2,196,676.
No. 2 Stephen Ames (who is $175,001 behind Els) isn’t playing this week so Els can put even more distance as the Champions tour heads to the Schwab Cup Playoffs. The Furyk & Friends and next week’s SAS Championship in Cary, North Carolina, will wrap up the regular season.
The three-tournament playoffs begin Oct. 18-20 with the Dominion Energy Charity Championship in Richmond, Virginia.
Earlier this season, Els won his first PGA Tour Champions major at the Kaulig Companies Championship at the Firestone Country Club. That earned him a spot in the 2025 Players Championship at the Players Stadium Course at TPC Sawgrass, where he will make his 25th career start and his first since 2017.
Els can put another notch on his senior record by winning the Schwab Cup, after finishing fourth, ninth and fourth in the last three years.
Els also won the American Family Insurance Championship and the Principle Chartiy Championship this year. He has 10 top-10 finishes in his 18 starts, and 14 among the top 25.
“Consistency has been the key this year,” he said. “I’m getting more consistent, which means all aspects of your game are clicking in the right direction. I feel it’s come around, short game, driving is better … and you have to drive it well here [at Timuquana] to do well.”
Els has finished among the top 10 in 56.6 percent of his Champions starts, with 34 top-five finishes and 23 top-threes. His fellow competitors are used to looking around on Sunday afternoon and seeing Els in the mix.
“Ernie has always been comfortable on the golf course,” said Justin Leonard. “Once he wins once or twice, all of a sudden he’s in the mix every week. I see him a bit at home [Jupiter]. He works hard. I’m happy to see him have the success he’s had this year. He’s been a great ambassador for the game and on our Tour for a long time.”
Furyk & Friends defending champion Brett Quigley is another Champions tour player from Jupiter who plays with Els frequently. He said anyone who doubts Els is still passionate about winning would be making a mistake.
“He’s still on top of his game and pretty motivated,” Quigley said. “He’s played great. When he makes putts, he’s really hard to beat.”
Els has been doing a bit of everything well this season. He’s 11th in driving distance (more than 291 yards per measured drive), fourth in greens in regulation (74.6 percent), fifth in scrambling (66 percent), third in sand saves (66.2 percent) and fifth in average putts per green hit (just over 1.7).
Els, ever humble, said he still has a long way to go to catch one of his other Jupiter pals, Bernhard Langer.
“Look at Bernhard … I’m under-performing. He’s got 46 victories and I’ve got six. But I am having a good time.”