Ernie Els has secured the prestigious 2003 Volvo Order of Merit award and in so doing he becomes the 31st recipient of the Harry Vardon Trophy.
Els has won the Heineken Classic, the Johnnie Walker Classic, The Barclays Scottish Open and the Omega European Masters in addition to finishing runner-up three times on The 2003 European Tour International Schedule.
The 34 year old South African, who followed his US Open wins in 1994 and 1997 with success in the 2002 Open Golf Championship, has, with winnings of €2,975,374 (£2,110,314) from 16 appearances, an unassailable lead in the Volvo Order of Merit which concludes with the playing of the Volvo Masters Andalucia at Club de Golf Valderrama, Sotogrande, Andalucia, from October 30 - November 2.
Els, who also won twice on the US PGA Tour earlier this year, took his number of wins for 2003 to seven with his victory in the HSBC World Match Play Championship on Sunday.
“I feel good about being the new European Number One,” said Els. “My goals are to win Major Championships and to win tournaments. I have supported The European Tour since 1991 and, after earning my card in 1992, it is great to finally win the Volvo Order of Merit.”
Ken Schofield, Executive Director of The European Tour, passed on his good wishes to Els, saying: “Ernie Els is a very worthy winner of the Volvo Order of Merit and we congratulate him on a superb achievement.
“Ernie has finished Number One mainly on the strength of his victories on our International Schedule in places as diverse as Australia, Scotland and Switzerland while he has also been runner-up three times in Singapore, Dubai and in the dunhill links championship in Scotland.
“These performances re-emphasise Ernie’s status as a truly global golfer and he will always be a welcome competitor on The European Tour International Schedule, where he has played more times in 2003 than on the US PGA Tour.”
Els joins a list of golfing greats – including three other South Africans – who have won the Harry Vardon Trophy. Bobby Locke captured the title of European Number One in 1946, 1950 and again in 1954, Dale Hayes lifted the crown in 1975 and for the past two years, Retief Goosen has emerged as winner of the Volvo Order of Merit title.
Darren Clarke, who is currently in second place in the Volvo Order of Merit ahead of Padriag Harrington, said: "Ernie deserves it more than I do. He's won more and played better over the season. I've no qualms at all.
"I've hit the ball well enough to be a lot closer to him than I am, but I couldn't turn that into scores on a consistent basis. It's the same old story."
Clarke was second in 1998 to Colin Montgomerie and again to Lee Westwood in 2000. He was also third in 2001 and fourth in 1997.
"I'm trying to improve as a player and maybe one of these days I will win it," added Clarke.
Els, a three-time Major Champion, did not manage to add any of the 2003 editions to his haul, or any of the three individual World Golf Championships, instead securing the Volvo Order of Merit on the strength of his appearances in a variety of countries around the globe. In fact, €2,213,754 from his total season’s earnings have come from tournaments outside the aforementioned top events.
The Majors and WGC events aside, Els has reaped a rich harvest through his studied commitment to be an international player. No journey is too far for the Wentworth-based South African, who has seldom – if ever – shirked a challenge.
At the start of 2003 Els was simply irresistible. On the US PGA Tour he launched the year by winning the Mercedes Championships and Sony Open in Hawaii back-to-back before finishing runner-up in the Caltex Masters, presented by Carlsberg, Singapore 2003.
Els later admitted that the long-haul from Hawaii proved detrimental to his challenge, but he was soon back in winning form, capturing the Heineken Classic at Royal Melbourne before shattering a series of scoring records, including the lowest total in relation to par in European Tour history, in winning the Johnnie Walker Classic in Perth.
Els finished second again behind Robert-Jan Derksen of The Netherlands in the Dubai Desert Classic but a return to Scotland, scene of his 2002 Open Championship victory, he enjoyed a second success in The Barclays Scottish Open.
More recently, he won the Omega European Masters for the first time at Crans-sur-Sierre in Switzerland before missing out by one shot to Lee Westwood in the dunhill links championship. Last week, he capped a truly outstanding season when won his seventh title of the year by successfully defending his HSBC World Match Play Championship title at Wentworth Club, defeating Thomas Björn in the final to secure his fifth win in the event, equaling the record set by Seve Ballesteros and Gary Player.
The game of golf has been all the richer for the arrival of Theodore Ernest Els from Johannesburg. He recently revealed his introduction to the game which has made him one of the world’s most recognisable sportsmen.
“I can’t remember exactly the first time I held a golf club, but I must have been about four years old,” Els recalled. “I was always around my dad, Neels, pulling the trolley or, when that became boring, just walking behind him or my grandfather with a club in my hand and trying to hit the ball.
“For some reason I just loved the game. I had this inexplicable passion to play the game. I knew this was the game for me. In South Africa, cricket was the summer game and rugby union in winter, but as I got older I would go to stay with my grandfather and Dirk and I would caddie for him and dad.
“There was usually plenty of daylight left at the end of the day and I would play 18 holes before nightfall. Then all four of us would play on Sunday morning. It was a very tight family affair. We loved the game and it was perfect. I have very happy memories of those days.”
A supremely gifted all-rounder, Ernie excelled at a variety of sports. He continued: “I played cricket and rugby all through school and at the age of 12 or13 I was playing tennis to a very high standard. I was especially good at tennis. I believe you shouldn’t get bogged down in one sport at an early age as you can lose the drive and passion if you concentrate on one thing.
“However the knocks were getting harder at rugby and I didn’t want to leave South Africa to go to America for tennis coaching. A lot of kids do that but I wanted to stay at home and do my own thing. I enjoyed my home life and a contented family environment. I still think I did the right thing.”
A season world traveller, Els talked about his travel schedules and his forthcoming plans for his family to be educated in England.
He smiled: “Travelling? I've been doing it for eight years now. Sure, I think there was one trip that got a little bit out of hand, when I went to Singapore from Hawaii and then back to Australia. That was tough.
“My schedule will probably start changing quite dramatically next year. I still think I'm going to play Hawaii, those first two events, and then I'm still contracted to do the Heineken Classic and the Johnnie Walker Classic in Thailand.
“Then I'm going to try and play different events next year a little bit. I do enjoy it. I think, in a sense, playing in Australia that time of the year is better for my game than playing the West Coast of America. I did the West Coast for two or three years, and I didn't really enjoy it much. It feels like the days are really short. The weather is not great. We play great golf courses, but they're never in really great condition.
“Anyway, I like taking the family and we go. In Australia we play at Royal Melbourne, I think it's one of the top five courses in the world, good weather, good practice facilities. They look after you unbelievably well. I feel I get more out of my game being down there, the only thing is getting there. It's a hell of a long way to go. But so far I've really enjoyed it.”
Regarding his decision to spend more time on the Wentworth Estate, he added: “We've kind of established that now. It's very central. It's easier for me to travel from London down to South Africa than to go to America. My wife is happy there and my kids are happy there.”
ERNIE ELS ON THE 2003 EUROPEAN TOUR INTERNATIONAL SCHEDULE
EVENTS PLAYED: 16
IN MONEY: 16
WINS: Heineken Classic, Johnnie Walker Classic,
The Barclays Scottish Open and Omega European Masters
(first time he has won four official events in a single season on The European Tour)
- HSBC World Match Play Championship
*denotes European Tour Approved Special Events
RUNNER-UP: Caltex Masters, presented by Carlsberg, Singapore 2003, Dubai Desert Classic and dunhill links championship
TOP 5’S: 10
TOP 10’S: 11
VOLVO ORDER: 1st - €2,975,374
OF MERIT
STROKE AVG: 68.95
GREENS IN REG: 80.2%
PUTTS PER GIR: 1.699
DRIVING DISTANCE: 310.0 yards
DRIVING ACCURACY: 67.9%
PUTTS PER ROUND: 29.4
SAND SAVES: 26/40
ROUNDS UNDER PAR: 39 from 60 rounds
ROUNDS IN 60’S: 35
TOTAL UNDER PAR: 139
EUROPEAN TOUR RECORDS IN 2003
Set a new European Tour record for 72 holes in relation to par at the Johnnie Walker Classic. Had rounds of 64-65-64-66= 259 (-29)
Set a new European Tour record for the lowest first 54 holes in relation to par also at the Johnnie Walker Classic. Had rounds of 64-65-64=193 (-23)
Has now won 15 European Tour International Schedule events and 47 wins a s a professional world-wide
Has won seven times world-wide in 2003, including having the opening two events on the US PGA Tour – the Mercedes Championships and Sony Open in Hawaii.
OTHER NOTABLE ACHIEVEMENTS
Shot 29 (-7) twice at the Johnnie Walker Classic on his way to his record-breaking win
Extended his streak of consecutive cuts made to 43, stretching back to the 2000 Johnnie Walker Classic
1937 Charles Whitcombe England
1938 Sir Henry Cotton England
1939 Reg Whitcombe England
1946 Bobby Locke South Africa
1947 Norman Von Vida Australia
1948 Charlie Ward England
1949 Charlie Ward England
1950 Bobby Locke South Africa
1951 John Panton Scotland
1952 Harry Weetman England
1953 Flory Van Donck Belgium
1954 Bobby Locke South Africa
1955 Dai Rees Wales
1956 Harry Weetman England
1957 Eric Brown Scotland
1958 Bernard Hunt England
1959 Dai Rees Wales
1960 Bernard Hunt England
1961 Christy O'Connor Ireland
1962 Christy O'Connor Ireland
1963 Neil Coles England
1964 Peter Alliss England
1965 Bernard Hunt England
1966 Peter Alliss England
1967 Malcolm Gregson England
1968 Brian Huggett Wales
1969 Bernard Gallacher Scotland
1970 Neil Coles England
1971 Peter Oosterhuis England
1972 Peter Oosterhuis England
1973 Peter Oosterhuis England
1974 Peter Oosterhuis England
1975 Dale Hayes South Africa
1976 Seve Ballesteros Spain
1977 Seve Ballesteros Spain
1978 Seve Ballesteros Spain
1979 Sandy Lyle Scotland
1980 Sandy Lyle Scotland
1981 Bernhard Langer Germany
1982 Greg Norman Australia
1983 Nick Faldo England
1984 Bernhard Langer Germany
1985 Sandy Lyle Scotland
1986 Seve Ballesteros Spain
1987 Ian Woosnam Wales
1988 Seve Ballesteros Spain
1989 Ronan Rafferty Northern Ireland
1990 Ian Woosnam Wales
1991 Seve Ballesteros Spain
1992 Nick Faldo England
1993 Colin Montgomerie Scotland
1994 Colin Montgomerie Scotland
1995 Colin Montgomerie Scotland
1996 Colin Montgomerie Scotland
1997 Colin Montgomerie Scotland
1998 Colin Montgomerie Scotland
1999 Colin Montgomerie Scotland
2000 Lee Westwood England
2001 Retief Goosen South Africa
2002 Retief Goosen South Africa
2003 Ernie Els South Africa
