News

No Easy Win

Published

16 years ago

Mar 15, 2010

Ultimately Charl Schwartzel helped pave the way for an Ernie Els (68-66-70-66-270) victory Sunday at Doral but that does not mean the win was not a hard fought one. Before he even arrived at the CA Championship and worked his way into a head to head duel with fellow South African, he had a lot to overcome.

Winning just once in the last five years, there have been a lot of distractions that have justifiably kept Els from paying full attention to his golf game. Family matters such as his son Ben’s Autism and personal health issues (knee) tend to put golf on the backburner, especially for somebody who had already accomplished so much in his career.

Ernie himself says he did not have a real focus in his golf game. “Well, you know, I think — let me answer this one correctly. I don't think the motivation was lacking. I just think that I went about it the wrong way, you know, I was almost chasing my own tail a little bit. You know, I was not looking after the smaller things. Meaning that just my normal mechanics in the game, the basics; I wasn't looking after that.”

That all changed this week when Els say he says he got the right mental focus. “I’ve had a tough run. It’s just great,” he said immediately after the winning putt was holed. “I thought my game was in good shape, I just wanted to prove it for once.”

The result was a brilliant performance at the WGC-CA Championship where it seemed it was not the 40 year-old distracted Ernie Els that showed up to play but the highly motivated and confident 22 year old version we were introduced to at the Open Championship back in 1992.

For most of the final round Els fought back and forth and with Schwartzel, not only his countryman but also his house guest the last couple weeks. The fate of the tournament was up in the air until the 14^th hole on Sunday when Els made a long putt to save his par after spending the balance of the 460-yard hole in the trees. That conserved his lead of a single stroke.

That lead would grow and Schwartzel hopes of a PGA Tour win to add to his five European Tour titles would dash on the very next hole. On a relatively innocuous par three both players struck their tee shots into bunkers. Subsequently Schwartzel would blast his sand shot into the hazard Els occupied on the other side of the green, eventually making a bogey while Els got up and down for his par.

When Schwartzel missed his makeable birdie putt on #16 that would have got him back to one stroke down to Els the final tournament result was all but sealed.

Els had a comfortable walk down the 18^th hole, on his way to his 17^th PGA Tour victory, one embraced heartily by the crowd on hand.

“…this means so much,” Els said afterwards in the media room. “I didn't think it was ever going to happen again, you know, but to come out here, and I mean, I've always loved playing here in Miami at Doral.”

With his win Els moves back into the top 10 in the Official World Rankings and 3^rd in the FedEx Cup standings.

Will this win put the thought of finally winning at Augusta in Els’ mind? We hope so and I am sure he would love to add to his major win total but like the 40 experienced player he is, he has it all in perspective.

“Yeah, but, you know, two years ago when I won, I got all carried away and thought, you know, I was going to win Augusta. This time I just want to take this in. It's great. But next week I'm going to work hard again. I've got to really get these things that I'm working on, get it really even drilled out a bit more and really be comfortable with it and get my ball flight perfect for Augusta.

I've got a couple more tournaments to play before that, so I would like to play well and then when Augusta comes around, it comes around. It's just another tournament.”

At least that is what he says now. We’ll see how that changes when he arrives in Georgia.

This report provided to GolfWRX.com by Flagstick Golf Magazine (www.flagstick.com)

News

GolfWRX’s Father’s Day Gift Guide (2026)

Published

2 days ago

Jun 9, 2026

GolfWRX Staff

A reminder from your friends at GolfWRX: Father’s Day is June 21. And as we do every year, we’re rounding up the best gifts for dad.

As we say every year, there’s no better golf-related Father’s Day gift than a round of golf with pops. Be it a country club or your favorite muni, take the time to get together to play 18 if you can.

Let’s get to the gifts.

Ghost Golf Qualifier Diamond Polo

We like the new polos that Ghost is offering, as the fabric and fit are so good. These new Qualifier Collection polos breathe well, are lightweight, stretch with your swing, and of course look great. You can wear them on the course, in the office, or just out at a casual event and they will fit right in.

Buy here.

STR8-Strip Grip Tape Remover

If your dad is an equipment aficionado and tinkers with his clubs, this tool works wonders. Removing grip tape has never been easier, just put a little head on the tape and the STR8-Strip peals it right off the shaft without any damage.

Buy here.

Why Golf: Putting Thing

When it comes to practice, it is good to have a purpose. This “Putting Thing” sure does it. We know from personal experience how challenging it can be and how rewarding it is on the practice green. This also provides some competition for your kiddo to see who will unload the dishwasher or do the next chore around the house.

Buy here.

OluKai Lae‘ahi Men’s Breathable Slip-On Shoes

Riding to and from the course in style and comfort is always a good thing. If you’re in a hurry, it’s a nice feature to slide into your shoes and get to the tee time. For the post-game shoe, at your locker or while putting your clubs away in the car. Nice to slide into a shoe that looks good anywhere. Pair that with meeting the family for dinner, no need to change!

Buy here.

Therabody Theragun Relief

A little wellness goes a long way. Keeping loose is a good way to go when it comes to the weekend game or treatment during the week. If there is a little ache or pain, the Theragun is there to help out. Help loosen up the back for a pre-game warm-up or cool-down.

Buy here.

World Cup golf apparel

Something for the soccer dads. Embrace the World Cup fever this summer on the course with custom gear to support the nation of your choice.

Buy here.

FootJoy Pro SL spikeless golf shoes

Give the old man a break and save his feet with the Footjoy Pro SL Men’s Spikeless Golf Shoes for some added comfort on the course.

Buy here.

Bushnell Wingman 2 GPS speaker

Combine all the hits as well as some game improvement with the Wingman 2 Golf GPS Speaker by getting audible distance readings from 38,000+ courses worldwide through the Wingman 2 remote or speaker.

Buy here.

Personalized Titleist Pro V1 golf balls

The No. 1 ball in golf is a safe bet, and the Pro V1 fits the largest chunk of the bell curve if you don’t know what ball pops plays. Add personalization for a, well, personal touch!

Buy here.

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Tour Photo Galleries

Photos from the 2026 OccuNet Classic

Published

2 days ago

Jun 9, 2026

GolfWRX Staff

With the PGA Tour across the border in Canada this week, GolfWRX Tour Photographer Greg Moore stayed stateside and headed to the OccuNet Classic presented by Amarillo National Bank in Amarillo, Texas.

It’s always interesting to see what the guys are playing on the KFT, and this week certainly hasn’t disappointed so far, with some incredible wedge stamping on display.

Check out links to all our albums below.

General Albums

2026 OccuNet Classic (KFT) – Monday #1

WITB Albums

Pullout Albums

Luke Potter’s custom Cameron putter – 2026 OccuNet Classic (KFT)

News

From the GolfWRX Classifieds: Scotty Cameron GOLO 6 with BGT Stability Tour2 2022 M Edition

Published

2 days ago

Jun 9, 2026

Will Schube

At GolfWRX, we are a community of like-minded individuals who all experience and express our enjoyment of the game in many ways.

It’s that sense of community that drives day-to-day interactions in the forums on topics that range from best driver to what marker you use to mark your ball. It even allows us to share another thing we all love – buying and selling equipment.

Currently, in our GolfWRX buy/sell/trade (BST) forum, @HuskerFlyer is sharing a Scotty Cameron GOLO with a BGT Stability Tour2 2022 M Edition shaft. While the putter is certainly enviable, the Augusta-inspired shaft is equally noteworthy.

From the listing:

Scotty Cameron Golo 6 with BGT Stability Tour2 2022 M Edition Scotty Headcover 34″ $375

To check out the full listing in our BST forum, head through the link. If you are curious about the rules to participate in the BST Forum, you can learn more here: GolfWRX BST Rules.