We’ve just finished-up here at the Principal Charity Classic and obviously it’s been a great week. Thank you to everyone involved in the tournament, the fans and the sponsors. It’s a very special feeling to win again. I haven’t won for a while. I’ve had quite a few chances, but it gets tougher when you don’t get it over the line.
You know, I think I was just more ‘into it’ this week. We had a game plan, I stayed in the present and didn’t get ahead of myself. As I said, it’s tough when you haven’t won in such a long time, you can easily get a bit antsy, but I felt comfortable; I didn’t get rattled when I hit a bad shot or faced an important putt. I was just in the zone. All week I felt like I played within myself, just focused on taking care of the small stuff, and when you do that well it usually leads to a good week, so yeah, really pleased with how this one turned out.
This now is hopefully a stepping stone. We’ll keep working hard and I’m looking forward to the rest of the season. The guys out here are very competitive and, on the type of golf courses that we play, it’s hard to separate yourself over three rounds; you have to stay in it for 54 holes and these past few years I haven’t really done that. When I joined the Champions Tour I always felt like I wanted to get into a winning frame of mind. Let’s see how we go. Golf is still my first love. Ever since I was a kid I’ve wanted to play at this level and I still do. I’m 54, I love the Tour, I just want to keep going and keep getting better.
As you may have noticed, we have a new website! The team have been working hard behind the scenes in the off-season and we’re delighted with the results. I think this new website better reflects this stage of my life. Obviously, tournament golf remains my main focus and passion. But life for me now is about so much more – from golf course design, various business interests and, of course, our charitable endeavours. We hope you like it and that you’ll visit regularly to catch up on all our latest news. You’ll notice there’s a tab on the homepage that allows you to sign-up for our regular newsletter.
You can keep tabs on my playing schedule here on the website. We update it on a regular basis as the season unfolds, basically once I’m committed to a tournament. There’s also a page dedicated to my equipment in ‘What’s in the Bag’. For the trivia buffs among you, there’s also a complete list of my tournament wins and career highlights.
Ernie Els Design has a prominent showing on the new website. We’ve got some exciting news in the pipeline and I’ll be able to share that with you soon. In the meantime, I’d invite you to take a tour of our existing portfolio of golf courses. They’re spread far and wide across the globe, in locations as diverse as rain forest and desert, and our relatively young firm’s success is a source of enormous pride for me and the rest of the team.
The descriptions and photos in the new section on Ernie Els Wines beautifully illustrate what’s on offer at our winery. Have a virtual browse. Hopefully one day we’ll be able to welcome you in person. This year the team at the winery launched a new online store rewards program called ‘Easy Bucks’ so when you start shopping you’ll start earning rewards immediately.
Also on the homepage you’ll see display banners for our Els for Autism charity golf series in the US and in South Africa. As always, the team have done a really great job putting together a schedule of tournaments at some wonderful venues. Amazingly, we’re now into our 14th year of the Golf Challenge in the US and the fundraising total exceeds $30 million. That’s just incredible. Thank you so much to our partners, participating golfers and donors. Every dollar and cent is helping change the lives of individuals and families affected by autism.
Okay, that’s it for now. We’ll see you on here again soon I hope!
