Ernie Els

We can look at some national golf betting action this week, as we have the South African Open teeing off. The main South Africa duo of Charl Schwartzel and Louis Oosthuizen are off in China contesting the Golf World Cup instead of participating in their national event. Have to admit that their absence has left a bit of hole in the line up, especially Schwartzel who would have been favourite in South Africa Open Golf Betting. So are we left with a totally empty field? No, there is still star attraction with Ernie Els and Retief Goosen. They are among the front runners with the bookmakers for South Africa Open betting, and they will resume their battle again this year. Both have won their home event before, Goosen winning it twice and Els lifting it three times, the third of which came last year at the Durban Country Club, so he is the defending Champion. However, we are at the Serengeti Golf and Wildlife Estate for this year’s South Africa Open and Goosen will be hungry for more. Both of Goosen’s victories at the event were at the expense of Els, and the roles were reversed last year when Els had to hold of a very strong late challenge from Goosen. So with good history at the event, would fully expect both of them to be making a big impact against here this year.

Both of the sound like a decent bet because of what they have achieved, but if it came down to picking one, would get behind Els. There is a good crop of other home grown talents in the field as well, with George Coetzee, Thomas Aiken and Alfred Dunhill Champion winner Garth Mulroy contesting in the field. The greens are going to be the biggest factor at the Serengeti this week, because they are monstrously difficult. The greens are fraught with difficult undulations and therefore calls for accurate iron work in the approach is paramount. The players really don’t want to be scrambling to make up and downs around these greens, because more often than not they are probably going to lose shots. Accuracy in the approach is crucial, but then appears to be half the battle because there is so much action on the Serengeti greens to negotiate with the putter. The fairways are wide enough to set up for good approaches, but those greens will be the great leveller here and that is why it may well be worth sticking with the experience of the likes of Els and Goosen here.

The home based players like George Coetzee (who is great value here for your South Africa golf betting) are worth looking at, but will pick out an Englishman as a potentially strong bet. That is Simon Dyson, who is looking to be the first Englishman to land the South Africa Open title for over thirty years. Dyson has had a fantastic season on Tour, consistently climbing the rankings and is worth getting behind because he should well be in the front running pack.

South Africa Open Golf betting
Ernie Els: 12/1 at SkyBet (Place Market 5/2 at SkyBet)
George Coetzee: 12/1 at Victor Chandler (Place Market 9/4 at Totesport)
Retief Goosen: 14/1 at Boylesports (Place Market 3/1 at Stan James)
Simon Dyson: 14/1 at Skybet (Place Market 11/4 at SkyBet)
Garth Mulroy: 25/1 at Totesport (Place Market 11/2 at BetFred)
Jbe Kruger: 25/1 at Bet365 (Place Market 5/1 at Bet365)
Hennie Otto: 33/1 at Boylesports (Place Market 13/2 at Boylesports)

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The PGA Tour is gearing up for another season, and the top level golf action tees off January 6th, out in Hawaii, with the Tournament of Champions. As the name suggests, only those PGA Tour players who won a tournament during 2010 are in attendance. First a bit about the Plantation Course at Kapalua, as it will have some bearing on your golf betting for his one. It is one of the easiest, most playable courses on the Tour according to the stats, and the Par 73 course, with its average of 69.884 scoring. There is also the long driving which naturally takes place at the course, and there was a remarkably high percentage from the players in hitting the green in regulation. However, the one side not to that last stat, is that the greens are big in Hawaii, and therefore, you will be looking for someone with a good record in long putting. It really should make a big difference at the end of the day. There are some big names from golf missing from the list of contenders, probably none more so than Tiger Woods, who finished last season empty handed. There is also no Lee Westwood, no Rory McIlroy and no Phil Mickelson. However, there is still a star studded field getting ready to tee off in Hawaii on Thursday, and he we take a look down the front runners and their betting odds.

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Geoff Ogilvy: 8/1 at Bwin

The Australian is the defending Champion in Hawaii and naturally that will put him in good standing to go out as favourite this year. Won the Australian Open this year, putting him back in with another chance of glory in Hawaii. Didn’t show well in any of the Majors through last season at all, and in fact, missed the cut on three of them. What Ogilvy has, is the putting power to match Kapalua. In both of his victories at the Plantation Course, he has led the stats in putting. It says a lot about the course.

Ernie Els: 10/1 at BetFred

Has a great record at Kapalua, and won the tournament back in 2003. Out of six starts at the season opener, Els has landed five top six finished. Decent with the putter to put himself in with a chance, and after winning the South African Open Championship, could still be in good nick. The Big Easy is always worth a punt, and is being backed well at the bookies to make an early impression on the season. Incredibly consistent and should be in the running. Coming off the back of a strong season in 2010, where he wont eh WGC-CA Championship, plus the PGA Grand Slam of Golf. He also hit T3 at Pebble Beach in the US Open behind Graeme McDowell. The favourite here for many pundits.

Jim Furyk: 12/1 at Boylesports

The FedExCup Champion (for amassing the most tournament points over the season). Has a long history at the course in Hawaii, and was a winner there ten years ago. Clearly good enough to be in the mix, and certainly should be a name up there in the top ten, but there are probably stronger options than him around this price. Seven top ten finishes at Kapalua though, so experienced and knows the course like the back of his hand.

Dustin Johnson: 14/1 at Bet365

Had a strong start to last season, winning at the AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro-Am. There were bigger things to come though, when the American lifted the BMW Championship over Paul Casey. Put in solid, if not threatening performances at the Majors last year, his highlight a T5 at the PGA Championship. One of those players who are generally in the mix, but don’t stand out as a potential winner from the off.

Graeme McDowell: 14/1 at Extrabet

The new season holds a lot of promise and expectation for the US Open Champions. The Northern Irishman picked up four tournaments last year, plus the heroics in the Ryder Cup. This is his first visit to Hawaii for the tournament, but is steady and consistent enough to put himself right up there. Should be well up for this after beating Tiger Woods in a playoff for the Chevron World Challenge last month. Well worth a bet, and it will be interesting to see what kind of season he has, now that there will be even more pressure on him to perform this time around. He is the only Major winner in the field this year, and ironically paired up with Hunter Mahan, the man he beat in the final pairing of the 2010 Ryder Cup singles to win the tournament for Europe.

Steve Stricker: 16/1 at Skybet

Put in a great run at least year’s tournament here, not dropping a shot in 43 holes. Still, it wasn’t good enough to put him in contention then, as he finished down the pecking order. Did come close in 2008 when he finished as runner up, and at last year’s tournament, he was one of the most accurate in getting close to the pin. That should put him in good standing here. Solid player, picking up two tournament wins last year. Pretty reliable with the putter, which should put him in amongst the action at the top of the leader board. Likes to go off strong on the season, and really worth a good outside bet here.

Ian Poulter: 20/1 at Stan James

Colourful, would be one word to describe Poulter. He is a great golfer, but controversy just follows him wherever he goes. He is in Hawaii though on merit of course, after winning the WCG Accenture Match Play Championship. Sadly couldn’t quite back that up with any other wins other than the UBS Hong Kong Open, being a bit too inconsistent. Did show well in the Masters where he nailed a T10 finish. Climbed up to fifth early last year in the Official World Golf Rankings. Always a threat to have around once he gets into the groove.

Matt Kuchar: 20/1 at Extrabet

Surprisingly a little far back in the running, because he was the most consistent golfer on the PGA Tour last year. Finished third at the tournament last year, and really has to be one of the front runners. The Plantation Course really should suit his game to a tee, making him the strong tip for the tournament. After eleven top ten finishes last year on the Tour, Kuchar landed the Barclays in a playoff last year, finally and deservedly winning a title on Tour. Worth a punt in Hawaii all of the way.

Others:
Adam Scott: 20/1 at Totesport
Hunter Mahan: 20/1 at SportingBet
Francesco Molinari: 25/1 at BetFred
Stuart Appleby: 28/1 at Extrabet
Camilo Villegas: 30/1 at Totesport
Zach Johnson: 33/1 at BetFred
Justin Rose: 33/1 at Bet365

Lee Westwood is looking to cap a fine 2010 with a strong victory over a tough field at NedBank Golf Challenge in South Africa. The World Number one has a great clear round, without dropping a shot in the 18 holes on his second round. His eight under round of 64 lead the way in the small tournament which features just a dozen players. Westwood needs to secure a top two finish in South Africa to hold on to his recently acquired World Number One crown, because he could see Tiger Woods grab it back, if Woods wins his own event, the Chevron World Challenge in California. Woods currently leads there after one round. Westwood, with his strong second round, stole the lead of the NedBank Challenge away from Irishman Padraig Harrington, and backed up solid first round of 68. Westwood’s charge towards the top was helped by Harrington’s indifferent second round, where he only picked up just one birdie in a around of 72. This is something of a showcase tournament, but there are Tour points up for grabs, and that is why Westwood needs to secure a strong finish. He is going extremely well, and there are no signs of his injuries bothering him here at all, although he is still not 100% fit. He should be backed as outright winner, holding a three shot lead after two rounds. Tough to see him blowing that.

England’s Ross Fisher is producing a great show as well, sitting clear in second place, three shots behind Westwood and three ahead of three players tied for third. Fisher has put in a solid 67 and 68 in his two rounds, finding the conditions very much to his liking in South Africa. He should be a strong contender for a top two finish. Padraig Harrington, who held the overnight lead, really had one of the worst second rounds out there, and dropped a long way back to -6 under, six shots back of Westwood. This has largely been Harrington’s biggest problem this year, consistency. He has shown his class at times, but just hasn’t been able to produce enough of it. He is joined by Miguel Angel Jimenez and Edoardo Molinari on -6 under, with the Italian Molinari hitting a find round of 67, the second best score of the second round, a vast improvement on his first round of 71. Could he make a charge? All eyes from the home supporters will be on local Ernie Els though. The South African hit a 71 on the first round, but then gained some momentum with a 68 in the second. Back in the clubhouse after round two, Els is sitting seven shots back off Westwood on -5 under. Could be a threat, but needs a magical third round.

NedBank Golf Challenge Outright Odds

Lee Westwood: 1/3 at Totesport
Ross Fisher: 9/2 at Bet365
Padraig Harrington: 20/1 at Paddy Power
Edoardo Molinari: 25/1 at Totesport
Ernie Els: 28/1 at Stan James
Miguel Angel Jimenez: 40/1 at Unibet

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PGA Grand Slam of Golf Betting Odds

October 18-20, Port Royal Golf Course, Southampton, Bermuda

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A very interesting Golf Tournament coming up on October 18th, which will call for some bets to placed right now. The 2010 PGA Grand Slam of Golf takes place on the sunny shores of Bermuda, and the four big winners of the year will go head to head in a shoot out. This is an invitational tournament, the prize money of which doesn’t go towards any standings, and is the kind of thing which goes on after the regular PGA Tour season has ended. The PGA Grand Slam of Golf sees the four winners of the Majors over the season go for a big prize purse. This year, Open Champions Louis Oosthuizen plays, along with PGA Champions Martin Kaymer, US Open Champion Graeme McDowell, and Ernie Els, who steps in to replace Masters champions Phil Mickelson who has pulled out of the meeting because of wanting rest after being diagnosed with psoriatic arthritis. It’s been a busy month for the big leftie, including the Ryder Cup, so he is taking a break. Mickelson’s form fell away badly over the latter course of the season, but it still would have been nice to see him out there.

So where does that leave golf betting on the PGA Grand Slam of Golf? Well, Germany’s Martin Kaymer, who seems to be going from strength to strength, is outright favourite and that makes sense. Kaymer has won the last three tournaments he has entered, including the Alfred Dunhill Link Championship on the weekend, so he is in some blistering form. To put another feather in his cap, Kaymer, come the end of October, could be the number one ranked player in the world. As it stands, with Tiger Woods not participating until November, England’s Lee Westwood is primed to be announced as the new world number one on October 31 when the new rankings are released. However, Westwood is also out through injury, and with Kaymer playing in Spain before the rankings, Kaymer could steal top spot. That would be a harsh blow for Westwood who was miles ahead in the rankings before he got injured and would have fulfilled a dream come true in claiming number one spot. Still, it’s to Kaymer’s credit that he is where he is, and looks ready to become a superstar. That makes him a great bet for this tournament, even though there is no ranking points up for grabs. Form is everything and he is going like a steam train.

This is the ultimate golf foursome, played over 36 holes, and former Champion Ernie Els has been drafted in at interesting odds. The South Africa has blown a bit hot and cold this season but is a class act, nonetheless. Has won the PGA Grand Slam of Golf, a foursome which Tiger Woods has won seven times. It has been a good thirteen years though since Els won, after gaining entry as US Open winner. Louis van Oosthuizen, whose swing impressed so much at St Andrews during the Open, has kind of fell away, in some post euphoric success burn out. He should rightly be back in the betting as he hasn’t proven that he can live with the best with any consistency. A lot of the eyes in golf betting then will probably turn towards Northern Ireland’s Graeme McDowell, as he will be fresh in the minds of punters after winning the Ryder Cup for Europe. The US Open Champion has shown a lot of maturity this year following his win, and has handled things better than Oosthuizen. He is a solid contender and should not get overshadowed in the big foursome in Bermuda at all. Again you have to look at confidence and form, and starting at a great ante post price, does make for a pretty decent bet. Kaymer looks to be the man to beat though.

2010 PGA Grand Slam of Golf Betting Odds

Martin Kaymer: 9/4 at William Hill
Ernie Els: 11/4 at SkyBet
Graeme McDowell: 3/1 at Boylesports
Louis Oosthuizen: 5/1 at Victor Chandler

PGA Tour Championship, September 23rd-26th at East Lake Golf Club, Atlanta, Georiga

The culmination of the PGA Golf FedEx Cup will arise next week, as the last thirty players left in the completion make for the final shoot out at East Lake CC in Atlanta for The Tour Championship. Some of the top names in golf have fallen by the wayside already during the playoffs including current champion Tiger Woods.  You can add to that list Rory McIlroy, Ian Poulter and Vijay Singh (who is the only other winner of the title along with Woods) as well, and they fell at the culmination of the third play off tournament, the Deutsche Open. The FedEx Cup is the grand finale of the PGA Tour for the year. All through the golf calendar, players earn points for performances on the Tour throughout the year, and the Top 125 ranked players go forth into the Play Offs. The FedEx Cup play offs are held over four tournaments, The Barclays, the Deutsche Bank Championship, the BMW Championship and the big season ender, The Tour Championship. After the Barclays, twenty five players are cut, after the Deutsche Bank Championship, another thirty players are cut from the play offs, and after the BMW Championship only the top thirty players left in the FedEx rankings will go forward to win the chance of golf glory and a mammoth pay out. That bonus? A cool $10 million, and the winner of each of the play off tournaments will earn $1,350,000.

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With the points accumulated over the season, the Top 125 ranked players go into the FedEx Cup play-offs. Typically, around 500 points can be earned for a win on Tour, but points varied from tournament to tournament depending on things like the class of field. Ernie Els was the leader at the end of the Regular Season points standing, his two Tour wins and six top ten finishes just enough to hold on to top spot ahead of Steve Stricker. Jim Furyk came in third, big Phil Mickelson fourth, and England’s Justin Rose 5th.  Any points won in the FedEx Cup play off, are then added to the total points earned from the regular season, and players are cut from the play offs if they fall outside the cut line in the rankings after each play off. Points in the FedEx Cup play off are worth five times as much as regular tournament points, which means that players back down the rankings really can catch up if they have a good play off. However, at the end of the third play off tournament, all points are reset for the final thirty heading into the Tour Championship. This is so that all thirty players will stand a chance of winning the FedExCup in the final event. Basically what happens, is the top ranked player going into the Tour Championship is given 2500 points, the second ranked player has 2250 and so on, right down to the thirtieth ranked player, who starts the tournament with 210 points.

What all this means, is that the 30th player, with the 2500 Play Off win points available in the final event, can win the tournament. While this makes things exciting, realistically, the top five ranked players going into the final event of the FedEx Cup has the best opportunity of winning the title. This is because if any of the top five win the Tour Championship, they will be guaranteed to win the FedEx Cup, as no one behind them will be able to  catch them. For the thirtieth ranked player to win it, they could win the Tournament, but because of points distribution throughout the rest of the field, they would need the top five for example to all finish right at the back of the field. So when it comes to golf betting on the FedEx Cup, you really should be looking at the top five players going into the tournament. Anyone outside of that needs other results to go their way, even if they win the tournament. Who are those players? Well, lets take a look at the top five, and their reset points going into the Tour Championship.

1st Matt Kuchar 2,5000
2nd Dustin Johnson 2,250
3rd Charley Hoffman 2,000
4th Steve Stricker 1,800
5th Paul Casey 1,600

Next, let’s take a look at the FedEx Cup Play Off winners for 2010 and you will see the huge importance of picking up a win in the play offs.

The Barclays: Matt Kuchar
BMW Championships: Dustin Johnson
Deutsche Bank Championship: Charley Hoffman

Hoffman, for example, with his surprise win, moved up from the ranking of 77th at the end of the regular season to put himself in with an enormous chance of winning the FedEx Cup from nowhere. He will be the outsider though of the top five, as that was his first victory on Tour all season, and when you stand him up against the other four, you really wouldn’t look to back him too strongly. Let’s take a quick golf betting preview of the top five players going into the Tour Championship, plus a couple more of the players on the outside fringes, who will need some help, but are in with a great chance of winning the Tour Championship. Odds in brackets are for FedExCup winner outright odds.

Matt Kuchar (2/1 at ExtraBet)
Has been playing really well all season, and has been greatly consistent. That consistency has carried over into the Play Offs where he has a win, a third place and an 11th place finish to keep him at the head of the FedEx Cup rankings. The win at the Barclays was his first win of the season, but he is a worthy challenger after coming close a few times this season. Well worth a punt as he is in the driving seat an should be strongly confident on what could be considered his home course.

Dustin Johnson (7/2 at BetFair)
Was one of the first players to really shine at the start of the season and his win at the BMW Championship was his second tour win of the season. Winning tournaments on the PGA Tour takes a lot with such huge fields, so consistency is all important throughout the long season. Lost his way in the middle part of the season, but recovered strongly with some good finishes to put himself back into contention. Slipped badly to finish down in 57th at the Deutsche Bank Championship though. Johnson has made some big mistakes at crucial times during the season. Will the pressure of the occasion get to him again?

Charley Hoffman (21/1 at BetFair)
Has actually been gaining some good momentum going through to the FedExCup play offs. With his surprise win at the Deutsche Bank Championship, that secured his fourth top ten finish out of his previous six starts. Up until then, he really had not threatened that much during the season. That was indicative of his performance at the BMW Championship where he lost a lot of his momentum and had a very poor tournament. An outside chance at best.

Steve Stricker (6/1 at ExtraBet)
More than capable of picking up a win at the Tour Championship. Has two wins under his belt for the PGA Tour season, and three top ten finishes in the play offs, including a third place finish, shows just how strong he can be. In good form, and could well end up as the player of the year and deservedly so. Another very consistent player and that is why he is where he is here in the position which he is. Makes for a strong bet sitting in one of the top five positions.

Paul Casey (10/1 at ExtraBet)
Hasn’t won a tournament on the Tour this year, but has looked pretty good at times. There have just been small glitches which have upset his tournament runs, like the three consecutive bogeys he picked up when in a strong position at the BMW Championship. He should have won really, but his final back nine was a huge disappointment and left him in second. Casey was left out of the Ryder Cup team by Colin Montgomerie, but if he wins here, the World Number eight would prove a big point that he should have been considered a little more. Again, there are signs that he just finding the consistency needed to pick up what would be his first and most important win of the season so far.

Ernie Els (26/1 at BetFair)
Had been leading the FedEx Cup rankings for most of the season. Looks to have lost his way a little bit after a good run at the US Open where he finished third. Top quality player of course, but once momentum is gone, it is hard  to get it back. He has finished in the top take at East Lake for the past two years, and with a little push could be in the reckoning. Two wins on the Tour this year, but finishes of 71, 30th and 13th in the play offs have left him lingering down in eighth.

Phil Mickelson (12/1 at ExtraBet)
One of the top players in the world and winner of the Masters this year, who has had several chances to knock Tiger Woods off the top of the Official World Golf Ranking charts, and has missed them all. Has been struggling a bit with health, but the big leftie could round off a great season if things go his way here. A shocking missed cut at the Barclays, the first play off tournament has really cost him dearly though, picking up no points. His subsequent finishes of 25th and the 8th showed a big more perhaps to come from Mickelson, but has maybe left things just a little to late to grab the FedEx Cup title.

Luke Donald (20/1 at ExtraBet)
Unlucky not to win the Deutsche Bank Championship really, as Hoffman’s amazing performance there was all that stood between Donald and him pushing for a win. Donald came in second then and a 15th finish at The Barclays has kept him in the hunt, as he starts from the rank of seven for the Tour Championship. Has had a decent year but is without a win, but has five top ten finishes to his name. Still has a chance at the FedEx Cup but needs his most clinical performance of the season.

The Tour Championship Winner Outright Odds
Phil Mickelson: 15/2 at SportingBet
Steve Stricker: 9/1 at Bwin
Dustin Johnson: 10/1 at SkyBet
Matt Kuchar: 11/1 at Stan James
Paul Casey: 16/1 at Totesport
Adam Scott: 18/1 at Bwin
Ernie Els: 20/1 at Bet365
Luke Donald: 25/1 at Victor Chandler

Mathematically. Wow, that’s a big word with which to start an article. I suspect it’s a personal best. Sorry, where was I? Oh,yes! Mathematically, only three men can prevent Rory McIlroy from winning the European Order Of Merit on the new Earth Course at Jumeirah Golf Estates in Dubai this week. The 20-year-old is in pole position to win the Race To Dubai, as the Order Of Merit has been re-branded, following a second to Frenchman Gregory Bourdy at the Hong Kong Open in Fanling, overtaking Lee Westwood, who had a bit of a nightmare in the former colony. Also suffering disappointment last week was Geoff Ogilvy, who failed to make an impact at the JBWere Masters in his native Australia so, with Paul Casey ruled out with injury, that leaves only Westwood, Germany’s Martin Kaymer and Ross Fisher (who did us a massive favour in the World Matchplay) as potential challengers to McIlroy‘s claims to be European number one. The young Ulsterman, in only his second season on the European Tour, is a general 1-2 to collect enough prize money to ensure he finishes ahead of the bunch and a general 9-1 to end the year on a high by winning the Dubai World Championship itself. But nerves are surely going to play a part here. Westwood (a general 16-1) is vastly more experienced and, though his form has tailed off a little in recent weeks, he’ll be trying to exert maximum pressure on McIlroy with the big four, in the opening rounds at least, set to be out on the course at the same time. Kaymer must be cursing the fact (I nearly wrote kicking himself) that he missed two months of the season having broken toes in a karting accident but a win in Dubai, for which he is a general 14-1 chance, would still guarantee him top spot and his fate is still in his own hands, unlike Fisher (a general 20-1) who could still miss out if McIlroy or Westwood were to finish in the frame. And of course, there are almost 60 of the world’s best players out to spoil the party. Ernie Els has a fantastic record in Dubai and is back in form. At a general 16-1 he might be worth a saver, while Padraig Harrington is reported to have been thoroughly refreshed by a family holiday and will have some takers at a general 18-1. Trying to end the year with a bang, though, this columnist will be relying on Justin Rose. The Englishman has had a bit of an up and down season, dividing his time between Europe and America, but has been in a rich vein of form over the last eight weeks, recording under par 72-hole scores in every tournament he’s contested in that time, including a 17 under to tie for fourth place in last week’s Children’s Miracle Network Classic in Florida. Rose is another who likes the desert (he was second in the Dubai Desert Classic back in February) so I’ll be having an interest at 30-1 with boylesports.

The mere fact that Phil Mickelson is back on a golf course speaks volume about the character of the world’s best left-hander. Wife Amy was diagnosed with breast cancer last month and Mickelson immediately suspended his participation on the US PGA Tour to be by her side. Amy faces major surgery next month followed by a lengthy programme of treatment but she’s insisting that her husband try to carry on as normal in the interim, which is why Mickelson did his best to get rid of any ring-rustiness in last week’s St Jude Classic and why he’ll be lining up in this week’s US Open at Bethpage. The two-time winner freely admits that his putting still isn’t finely tuned, so it’s something of a surprise that he’s the one punters have been getting stuck into over the last 24 hours. A market drifter last week Mickelson, who turns 39 this week, is now as low as 10-1 in places but still be backed at 16-1 with Skybet to be what would surely be one of the most popular winners of a major since, well since Tiger Woods won last year’s US Open despite being in chronic pain with a knee injury. Woods, of course, is the man to beat on a course that always plays long but extrabet and betfair‘s 2-1 is the biggest quote you are going to get about the defending champion which, as always with Tiger, will either be outstanding value or a criminally short price. Geoff Ogilvy is third choice in the betting at a general 20-1 but I’m of the opinion that Ernie Els is just too big at a general 50-1 for someone with his class. The ‘Big Easy’ looked in good order on his last outing in the Memorial, hitting the fairways and the greens and, though failing to make the most of his birdie chances, that will have given him confidence he can be among the leaders on Long Island. Els goes out with compatriot Retief Goosen (a general 40-1) and Mickelson in the first two rounds and if that doesn’t inspire him, nothing will!