A reinvigorated Ernie Els won his second tournament in a row at yesterday's rain-delayed Arnold Palmer Invitational - and will now surely believe that victory at next week's Masters is within his grasp.
Els finished with a one-under 71 on the day, 11-under in total, to take his second victory of 2010 and his 18th PGA Tour win - the first time he has won two tournaments in succession since 2003. Els was two shots ahead of nearest competitors Edoardo Molinari and Kevin Na, who finished nine-under. Tied for fourth place was Retief Goosen and Chris Couch, each a stroke further back on eight-under.
Golfers seldom welcome the arrival of rain, but Els might have offered a silent prayer of thanks to the gods after a heavy downpour interrupted the final round on Sunday. The 40-year-old had started the day in the lead and had at one stage extended that lead to five shots - only for his game to suddenly hit the skids, the South African hitting a double bogey on the 13th and following that up with a bogey on the 14th.
With the Big Easy making hard work of it, his lead down to two strokes, Els suddenly looked vulnerable - and then came the rain. Who knows if Els would have been able to retain his composure if play had continued? Whatever, yesterday the three-time major winner got back on an even keel, dropping not a shot across the remaining four holes to hang on for victory. The win also eases Els back into the top 10 of the world rankings at No. 7.
Of the bigger names, Phil Mickelson's lacklustre season continues - the world No. 3 ended tied for 30th place on two-over, as he racked up five bogeys and a triple bogey on the 3rd. The much lauded Japanese teenager Ryo Ishikawa disappointed once again, tying for 40th place on three-over, and another hot young prospect, the Californian Rickie Fowler was four-over.
Steve Stricker seemed determined to ditch his recently acquired status as world No. 2, finishing five-over, though much of that was attributable to a lamentable performance on Saturday, when the 43-year-old carded four bogeys and two double bogeys. On the final round, Stricker restricted himself to a triple bogey on the 13th and a bogey on the 14th.
Last year Els failed to win on tour even once, leading some onlookers to describe the player as a spent force. But with Tiger Woods likely to be rusty after his lay-off, and the other biggest names in golf thus far failing to shine this season, the revitalised Els has stepped into the breach.
He's never won the Masters, though he came second in 2000 and 2004 - maybe 2010 will be the year the big man finally gets to try on that famous green jacket.
Tags: