Ernie Els Shot Quotations

I almost never hit a shot all out, and I make a conscious effort to swing my long clubs just as I do my wedges. Keep this in mind when hitting your fairway woods.

I think most amateurs dread playing a 180-plus-yard par 3 even more than a hard par 4. Part of it is psychological: You think you should be getting a breather, distance-wise, and instead, you get hit with a long iron or hybrid shot over trouble.

When you get to the tee on a really long par 5, I know what you're feeling. You want to let the shaft out on the driver and try to bomb it down there. I get the same feeling. But a big tee shot is not always the best strategy, especially on a long hole.

I've shot 69 but I feel like I've left some shots out there today,

It was unbelievable, ... That's probably the loudest I've ever heard it. It was quite loud in '98 when I played with Jack, especially when he made a few birdies on the front nine. It was exciting. If you were watching on television, it must have been good. Kirk made that 1 in front of us on 16 -- I never saw the shot but I heard that roar, and then K.J. on 11, that ball never left the flag. It was great golf.

Right now, the putt on the 72nd hole, that's the putt I'm going to be thinking about. I hit such a good second shot and had such a difficult putt. If I'd known how difficult it was from there, I'd have hit it past the pin, which I tried to do in the playoff. I had my chances, though.

I plot the par 5s back from the green and make my plan. If I can reach the green in two shots, I'm going to be aggressive off the tee. But if 's a three-shot hole, the goal changes. You want to put yourself in position to hit your favorite shot to the green.

For the most part, when you play a full shot from the primary rough at your course, you're gauging how close to a standard shot you can hit based on your lie in the grass.