Ernie Els hoping that his renovation of the Wentworth club will be easy on the players at BMW PGA Championship
This happens to be the second year in continuation that the “Big Easy”, Ernie Els has been facing scathing criticism from all nooks and corners after he redesigned the sprawling Wentworth club in 2010.
The redesigned course turned out to be a lot tougher than it used to be and the veteran South African had to face the music for considerable period of time.
This year, however, the BMW PGA Championship will be returning to the revered venue this week, with some more tweaking by the formidable Els himself.
The 43-year-old three-time major winner is hoping that the players will have a different air of the course this time around.
Speaking about his recent tweaks on the course, Els lamented the fact that he was not able to get honest reviews in the first year of the renovation and considers it unjust on part of the critics.
He said, "The way it was put forward the first year was a little childish, but hopefully we'll have more smiling faces from the players this year. You're not going to please everybody, but I don't believe everybody should criticize just because there's changes”.
One of the dejected players in last year’s BMW PGA Championship was the then world number one Lee Westwood who dropped his second playoff approach shot in the water hazard, providing the window to Luke Donald who won the title with a birdie on the same hole.
Westwood later said, "Wentworth - since Ernie's redesigned it - it's a lot tougher”.
Known for his lofty swing and comfortable posture, Els has been one of the top-ranked players from South Africa and is often considered the flag bearer of the sport from the African nation.
He started off his own golf course designing ventures a few years back and his portfolio now includes several top-ranked international courses all over the world.
He is currently working on several other ventures including the Hoakalei Country Club at Hoakalei Resort – Honolulu, Hawaii, The Els Club – Dubai, UAE, Gardener Ross Golf and Country Estate – Gauteng, South Africa, Albany – New Providence, The Bahamas and
Durrat Al Bahrain Golf Course – Durrat Al Bahrain, Bahrain.
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