Ernie Els believes the hottest streak in golf will end in the heat at Southern Hills
Michael Vlismas in Tulsa
There was a collective gasp of disbelief among the American media when Ernie Els declared: “Even Tiger is going to struggle this week.”
They were not quite ready to believe him, of course. The prospect of Tiger Woods not winning a record fifth consecutive major in this week’s United States Open at an unbearably hot Southern Hills Country Club is unthinkable.
In the week leading up to the major, the rest of the field have had to answer questions beginning with: “In the unlikely event that Tiger does not win …”
Woods admitted he would not put money on himself, but simply because at the kind of odds on offer, “it would not be a good business decision”.
But Els is confident the most spectacular streak in the history of golf could come to an end on the fairways of Southern Hills, hopefully signalling the beginning of his own return to form in the majors.
“This course will test even Tiger,” Els said. “Obviously, he has all the momentum in the world and usually we’re just playing for second place behind him. But this week could be different.
“Tiger is going to make mistakes this week. This golf course is as tough as I’ve seen, especially on and around the greens. If you look at the statistics of past US Open champions, mine included, then we’re all up there with greens hit in regulation.
“But this week, hitting greens is going to be really tough. Some of the greens are more undulating than those at Augusta National.
“And when you take into account the wind here, then they are probably even faster than Augusta. There’s no question, we’re in for a difficult week.”
Els’s own game is hardly at the level he would like it to be coming into the second major of the year. “I’ve had an up-and-down year, and if you look at my record the last month or so, it hasn’t been good.
“But I’ve worked really hard on my game, and feel a bit more comfortable with my swing. This is an important week for me. When you hit June, it’s just a blink of an eye and the year is gone. So I’ve got to start moving if I want to win again. This is a good time to start turning it around.”
The severity of the rough is usually the focus ahead of a US Open. But this year the greens have taken centre stage. In particular, those on holes nine and 18.
“You start thinking about those greens before you’ve even hit your first tee shot,” said Els.
David Duval, playing in his ninth US Open and still trying to win that first major, singled out 18 and described it as “unplayable”.
“I played with Chris Perry in a practice round. When we got to 18, we dropped a few balls and watched them roll off, and we were laughing about it. It was unplayable.”
Even Woods shook his head at the mention of 18. “That green is awfully severe. If you hit a solid shot into the middle of the green, there’s a chance of the ball rolling 40 yards off. That’s a pretty harsh penalty for a good, solid shot.”
But in the minds of his supporters, Woods’s words will not detract from his ability to make it five in a row this week. “It would mean a lot to me to achieve that. But this week, I’m not trying to win five majors, I’m trying to win one,” said Woods.
“What I’ve accomplished in the past is great, but it doesn’t hit any golf shots for me this week.”