Finding the Big Easy tough to take

The week before the recent BMW Championship at Wentworth, Ernie Els posted a blurb on his website about how good his swing was feeling and how much he was looking forward to the tournament at his home course (he has a house on the 16th). It was a fairly predictable piece but for some reason the words just didn’t ring true and sounded…well…hollow. I got the feeling Ernie was actually trying convince himself that his swing was okay and that coming “home” might help him find some form leading up to this week’s US Open. In truth it sounded more like hope than belief (the golfer’s paradox). He missed the cut.

I’m sure it must have hurt. It certainly hurt me. Like many others, I can’t help but get a little emotionally involved when the Big Easy’s out on the links. Perhaps it’s that he’s flown the flag for us for so long, or because his easy-gong nature makes him hard to dislike, or because I’m more of a patriot than I’d care to admit, but I just find him one of those guys who I really want to do well. Seeing him struggle over the past few seasons hasn’t been easy to take.

There have been plenty of theories as to why. From the distractions of a thriving golf course design company to his involvement in a prestigious wine-making business, to rumours that he enjoys a beer more than spending time on the range, and of course the serious knee injury that kept him out of the game for most of 2006. There could be truth in all of the above, and if you add the recent revelation that his son Ben is autistic, the recipe to get that silky swing flowing smoothly again just hasn’t been there.

Of course the big man’s had to have a long hard look at himself, and we’ve seen some very visible attempts to rectify the situation. First there was putting (isn’t it always?). Blessed with a magical touch, Easy appeared at a loss when the putt’s suddenly started sliding by. He eventually abandoned his trusted putter and brought out an unusual assortment of flatsticks to try and get the ball to drop. He’s finally settled on a tool similar to that used by Phil Mickelson, but the putts still aren’t dropping like they used to and, frankly, I’m not convinced that he’s convinced he’s got the right club in his hands.

Then there was the high profile switch of club manufacturers from Titleist to Callaway last year, a puzzling choice since Callaway didn’t even have a set of blades, let alone a set of irons that resembled what Ernie had spent the last 10 years playing with. At Ernie’s prompting, Callaway developed a prototype set of blades that he basically tried out for the first time at last year’s Nedbank Golf Challenge. I think it was around the same time as his flirtation with a square-headed driver. It really begs the question why a pro of his stature would have to spend so much time trying to get his equipment right? To be honest, I think if he was in the right “place” he could basically use Bobby Locke’s driver and Ben Hogan’s putter and he’d be at the top of the leaderboard most of the time.

Of course then there was the announcement that he had a three year plan to get back to number one…phew, talk about putting pressure on yourself! I’m not sure why he had to make it a public announcement but maybe it was on the advice of his old Belgian sports psychologist Jos Vanstiphout (who’s been rather quiet in the lean years…) who said he had to set concrete goals that he couldn’t back out of. Now I certainly don’t mind the fact that Ernie was re-dedicating himself to the game, but I would have settled for a few good results and a win or two to signal his intent. Why inflame a media circus that could only invite further scrutiny?

Most recently there was the switch from long-time coach David Leadbetter to Butch Harmon. Tiger’s ex. Ernie basic summation was that he knew he’d probably be hearing a lot of the same things, but that sometimes you just need to hear it from another person. I can imagine the scenario after ten minutes on the range. Butch: “Okey-dokey Ernie, the swing looks great and you’re hittin’ the ball real good, so let’s just go out there and believe we can win, ok?”

To his credit, after missing the cut at the BMW and the Memorial the week after, Ernie came out and said he was taking the week off to work on the mental side of his game. Fair enough. I just hope he doesn’t think about it too much. Like the out-of-form batsman who starts questioning every aspect of his technique, I think Ernie’s best option is to spend some quality time out in the middle, which means playing a lot of golf and playing for enjoyment. In time I believe the rhythm will return and the confidence (and results) will come.

It’s easy to over-simplify things when you’re not directly involved, but I don’t know many solutions that have been found by over-complicating a problem. Having won the Honda Classic earlier this year, there have been some encouraging signs for the Big Easy. I only hope that with the US Open beginning this week and the British Open around the corner, we can see him begin to produce what the goods again, because there’s really not much I enjoy more than being in front of the telly when Ernie’s in contention for a major. Somehow, seeing him in the mix, toughing it out on the final stretch makes it that a little bit easier on me.