KAILUA-KONA — Ernie Els has officially arrived on the Big Island.
The 50-year-old South African has won 71 times in his career as a professional golfer, including four major championships — two wins at the U.S. Open (1994, 1997) and two at The Open Championship (2002, 2012).
Until this week, he had never had the chance to tee off at the Hualalai Golf Course.
“We just came through here by chance one time 18 years ago and I never played the course,” Els said. “First time around and loving it.”
Els makes his PGA Tour Champions debut Thursday in the Mitsubishi Electric Championship at Hualalai. Els will compete against 37 of his peers to win the tour-opening makau hook trophy. Doug Barron and fellow South African native Retief Goosen will also be competing with Els for the first time at Hualalai.
“It’s really a privilege, if you think about it,” Els said. “You’re playing on the regular tour for so long, and then they call this the Champions Tour for a reason, because if you’re a champion there, they reward you on this side. So it’s really rewarding and it’s a privilege to be out here. Hopefully I can be of some benefit out there.”
If Els, Barron, or Goosen win this week, they’ll be joining a league of 10 players who have won in their first appearance in the tournament: Jerry Kelly (2018), Miguel Angel Jiménez (2015), Duffy Waldorf (2016), Loren Roberts (2006), John Jacobs (1999), John Bland (1996), George Archer (1990), Dave Hill (1988), Peter Thomson (1985) and Orville Moody (1984).
“I played nine holes Sunday, nine holes yesterday and 18 today and so far the course is nice,” Goosen said before the tournament. “The greens are a little slower. I hear they had a few issues with the greens, but they’ll speed up. But at the moment there’s no wind. I have not played the course in a strong wind, so it’s going to play totally different.”
Defending champion Tom Lehman returns to Hualalai after his first victory in 2019, where he rallied from behind David Toms’ four-stroke lead entering the third round to finish with a 7-under 65 for a one-stroke victory over Toms.
If Lehman successfully defends his title, he will only be the second player in tournament history to win back-to-back. Al Geiberger won the tournament in 1992 and 1993.
“I’m going into it with high expectations. as I’m sure nearly everybody would be,” Lehman said. “You know, 60, 70, 61, so I don’t want to waste my time, so I’m trying to make the best of it. I expect to play well. I’m committed to it. I think that’s the biggest thing out here is if you’re excited to play and you’re willing to be committed to it, I think you can still do well for a long time, so that’s my goal.”
Extension for PGA Tour Champions and Mitsubishi
PGA Tour Champions and Mitsubishi Electric announced a five-year partnership extension at the annual awards dinner Tuesday night before the tournament at the Four Seasons Resort Hualalai.
The extension encompasses the Mitsubishi Electric Championship at Hualalai and the Mitsubishi Electric Classic, held in Duluth, Georgia. Mitsubishi Electric has served as the title sponsor of the Mitsubishi Electric Championship at Hualalai since 2009, and as title sponsor of the Mitsubishi Electric Classic since 2016.
The Mitsubishi Electric Championship, which wraps up Saturday, has been held at the Hualalai Golf Course since 1997.
By the Numbers
11: The number of World Golf Hall of Fame members in the field — Fred Couples, Ernie Els, Retief Goosen, Hale Irwin, Bernhard Langer, Davis Love III, Sandy Lyle, Colin Montgomerie, Mark O’Meara, Vijay Singh and Tom Watson.
24: This is the 24th year the tournament has been held at the Hualalai Golf Course and is the longest running PGA Tour Champions event held at the same venue.
33: The number of major titles (the Masters, PGA Championship, U.S. Open, and The Open Championship) on the PGA Tour won by 14 of the golfers in the 38-player field this week at Hualalai.
61: Hale Irwin’s 2007 win at Hualalai came at 61 years, seven months, 18 days, making him the oldest winner in event history. Tom Watson’s victory in 2010 at 60 years, four months, 20 days made him the second-oldest winner.