Ernie Els Last Quotations

Contours on the second half of a long putt have more impact on how the ball rolls because it's going slower. Adjust your speed if that last part is playing uphill or downhill. Don't get fooled by an early slope or break.

I worked really hard on my long game the last two week, especially last week. I'm working on a bit of a flatter plane through the ball. I got a little bit steep on the ball so I'm trying to flatten it out a little bit through the hitting area.

He's a full notch behind Vijay. He's not even on the same rung. There's no major that rattles you like the U.S. Open. Last year's Open probably took a month to get over that. It's not like the Masters, where the conditions are generally the same. At the Open, they're probably already rattled going in.

Over four days of competition, it's going to narrow the field dramatically. You might see more tournaments like we had last year, where a couple of guys break away and it's kind of two tournaments within a tournament.

We haven't really played Augusta the last five, six years in very firm, fast conditions.

I've played with him quite a few times the last couple of years. It seems like he's gone up a level this year. It seems like he's really comfortable with his swing and his game. It seems like he's there every week. He's almost a golfing machine, so to speak. He never gets tired of the game. I think he's definitely going to be very tough to beat this weekend.

It would be a huge confidence booster to win here. I wish I'd played like this last week. I would have given (Beijing winner) Adam Scott a bit of a go.

Perhaps I know the greens a little better than Vijay because of last year and I know where they will break. I would like to think I have perhaps a very small advantage.

I've got myself in certain positions already, the last couple of weeks, the last month. But I just, for some reason, haven't sustained it or haven't gone forward on to the next little stage.

Before the injury, I had been playing professional golf for the best part of 16 years without any really long breaks. The last time I had a long break was in 2001 when I was out for five or six weeks with a back injury.