Ernie’s ‘second’ prize

If ever a golfer had the look of someone who just didn’t want to be there it was Ernie Els in the recent WGC NEC Invitational at Firestone CC in Akron, Ohio.

Coming off the crushing disappointment of missing out on yet another major in a year in which all four were within his grasp Els, who sets so much store by the Big Four, clearly could not find the motivation or even the interest to try to be competitive.

Finishing second can have a debilitating effect – you only have to look at Greg Norman – and one can only hope that once the pain eases Ernie will be able to re-kindle the flame for another tilt at adding to three majors he has already won.

Certainly, he has much to be proud of in 2004 – not the least further confirmation that he is one of the most compelling competitors when it comes down to the championships that really matter.

In fact, as pointed out by Tom Ierubino, a contributing editor on the Golfonline website, Els, while not winning, accomplished a unique achievement.

Ierubino reveals that “since the inception of the Masters in 1934, just 10 golfers have had four top-10 finishes in the majors in the same year. These 10 have accomplished this feat a total of 18 times: Jack Nicklaus (in 1971, '73, '74, '75, '77), Tom Watson (1975, '77, '82), Arnold Palmer (1960, '66), Gary Player (1963, '74), Doug Sanders (1966), Miller Barber (1969), Hale Irwin (1975), Ben Crenshaw (1987), Tiger Woods (2000), and Sergio Garcia (2002).”

And in 2004 Ernie and Phil Mickelson, who had an exceptional year, have added their names to the list by finishing in the top 10 at the PGA Championship at Whistling Straits.

Els finished second in both the Masters and British Open this year, third in the PGA and he tied for ninth at the U.S. Open.

Mickelson won the Masters, finished second in the U.S. Open, third at the British Open and was right up there again in the PGA.

The last time two players finished in the top 10 in all four majors was 1977 (Nicklaus and Watson). The most players to finish in the top 10 in all four majors in a single year was three in 1975 (Nicklaus, Watson, and Irwin).

The exceptional achievements of Jack Nicklaus are illustrated by the fact that he had four top 4s in 1973 (T3-T4-4-1) and four top 5s in 1971 (1-T2-2-T5). Note that in '71 the PGA Championship was played in February (with Nicklaus winning), making it the year's first major while the British Open was the last. Thus, Nicklaus had a chance to have four top 2s, but he finished five strokes behind winner Lee Trevino and four behind runner-up Liang-Huan Lu of Taiwan in the British Open at Royal Birkdale.

The only other golfer to have four top 5s in the majors was Woods in 2000, when he finished fifth in the Masters before winning the year's final three majors. Ben Hogan won the Masters, U.S. Open, and British Open in 1953, but didn't play in the PGA which overlapped with the British.

Palmer was the first player to have four top 10s in the majors, accomplishing it in 1960 when he won the Masters and US Open, finished second in the British Open, and tied for seventh in the PGA. Garcia in 2002 (8-4-T8-T10) was the most recent.

Ierubino also highlights the fact that Els now has 12 top-3 finishes in the majors in his career – one more than Tiger Woods although it has to be said the American has won eight times.

What this shows is that Els is always a threat in the Majors although one did get the impression at times this year that he puts too much pressure on himself and that he might be a bit more aggressive.