Ernie Els is still on a high after rejuvenating his stalled career by winning the World Match-Play Championship this month, and he now wants revenge over Adam Scott in Singapore.
The big South African put inconsistent form behind him to grab the £1-million winner’s cheque at Wentworth and it has fired him up for the Singapore Open, where he has twice finished second to the Australian.
”Obviously I’m looking to put that right and go one better this week,” he said.
”To be honest, I’m still on a bit of a high after winning the HSBC at Wentworth a few weeks ago. My confidence is up. I’m ready to go. Basically, I can’t wait to tee it up.”
Scott held off Els here last year in a three-hole play-off after the entire fourth round was abandoned following a ferocious storm. The previous year, the world number six comprehensively beat the South African by seven strokes.
Els, a regular visitor to Asia, is a fan of the par-71 Serapong course at the Sentosa Golf Club, but with a $12-million upgrade since last year, he expects it to be a tougher test than ever.
”I like this golf course. And I tell you it’s a pretty tough test,” he said on his website.
”I mean, Scotty was 13-under in 2005 and that was enough to win by seven shots. Then last year he and I were tied at 10-under in the final round when they abandoned play and sent us out to finish the tournament in a three-hole playoff.
”So you know, this course doesn’t give up a low score easily. It holds its own.
”And I guess with the changes they’ve made since we were last here, it could play even a little bit tougher. We’ll see. I wouldn’t be unhappy if it did, though.
”I prefer golf courses that play tough and challenge every department of your game. That’s when I often play my best golf.”
A combination of inspired putting and creative scrambling saw Els (38) win at Wentworth, and despite being on a break since then he has still fitted in some practice to iron out the creases in his game ahead of Singapore.
He said it was important for him to keep working even when he was resting.
”I managed to spend some time working on my golf game, as I always do whenever I have a week off between tournaments,” he said.
”Obviously it’s good to take time off and relax just to recharge the batteries.
”But at the same time I think it’s also important to keep things ticking along, basically keep your eye in and work on the fundamentals, because in this game it’s amazing how easily you can slip into bad habits if you’re not careful.” — Sapa-AFP