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MERCEDES CHAMPIONSHIPS

January 4, 2005

Ernie Els

KAPALUA, HAWAII

TODD BUDNICK: We welcome 2003 Mercedes Championships champion Ernie Els. Thank you for stopping in, Ernie. You finished second on the U.S. Tour last year and first on the European Tour, a wonderful year. A little curious to see what's in store for Ernie in 2005.

ERNIE ELS: Yeah, I'm also curious, with everybody. I had a good time off. I was home. I actually just got into town this afternoon from Orlando. Broke up the trip in Orlando. I think all in all, looking back through 2004, it was a good year. A lot of good things happen, and a lot of disappointments here and there, but it was a good year, to finish first and second, on the Order of Merit, that's a first for me, I haven't done that. So it was good.

And, you know, 2005, I look forward to it. I haven't got anything really new to share with you, but other than that, I had a great off time. I had a good break this time and I'm looking forward to it.

Q. Are you enjoying being in Hawaii, three wins in the last two years in the State of Hawaii; what are you looking for this week at the Plantation?

ERNIE ELS: Well, I hit some balls in Orlando. I practiced myself to death in December, but I hit some balls and, you know, I feel like I'm striking it. I'm making contact. So but, yeah, the last couple of years I've played well in Hawaii. I remember a couple of years ago I was 30th or something here. Sony has been good to me the last two years. I love playing and I love coming here. It's a long way to come but it's worth the while. You know, the kids love it, I love it, it's a good two weeks.

Q. When is the last time you weren't making contact; age two, three?

ERNIE ELS: Never played the game at that age. Not like Tiger. (Laughter.) I only took it up when I was eight.

Q. What's the minimum you could do this year to make it a successful year in your own mind?

ERNIE ELS: You know, success, if you told me before the U.S. Tour last year, hey, I'll give you three Top 5s in the majors, I'll give you five wins worldwide, that's a very good year. But who knows, you know. Let's see how it goes. Obviously I want to have -- there's a lot of good things that I want to do. I'm still chasing the Grand Slam. So, you know, looking at majors, you know, I would love to at least win a major this year. It sounds very cocky but that's always my mindset. That makes it a very good year obviously. Just winning any tournament to start off with, you know, it will be great, and then see how the momentum builds. Hopefully there's some momentum that can start building, so, you know, let's just be cautious at the start and see where we are and take it from there.

Q. You mentioned majors. How does the rotation fit your game for the year with Baltusrol, St. Andrews, Pinehurst, obviously Augusta?

ERNIE ELS: I looked at it last year really, and I'm very excited about it. I love Baltusrol. I was there in '93, the first U.S. Open ever. Pinehurst last time I played there, I didn't do too well. I missed the cut. But I'd like to get my revenge on it hopefully this time around, and St. Andrews is almost like a home course for me. I've played it every year since 1992. So I know it as good as anybody. Obviously the Masters, you know, it will be great to get back there.

But there's obviously a lot of traveling involved for me now, the next couple of weeks. So I've got to be focused on each and every week where I go to and I want to see where my game takes me and see what I have to work on, which aspects have I have really got to work on, as I say. I worked in Orlando with David Leadbetter, so I kind of know where I am. Let's see how the year goes and I've got a lot of golf to be played.

Q. Where is the plane going to take you the next month or so?

ERNIE ELS: I'm playing the next three weeks, so it's here and then San Diego. I've got a week off and we've never been to Tahiti, go down there, break the trip and go to Australia. That's basically where I'm going and I have a couple of weeks off again after that.

Q. So Australia is your only other-part-of-the-world tournament the first part of the year?

ERNIE ELS: Yeah, first part of the year.

Q. After Australia you go then to Dubai?

ERNIE ELS: Yeah, I'm going to take a couple of weeks off and go to Dubai. Then get back on the Florida Swing.

Q. What do you think a little less playing in the first part of the year is going to mean for you, instead of going Thailand and back to Australia things you've done in the last couple of years?

ERNIE ELS: Let's see how it goes. Let's see how I play. If I have a really nice start, I'll leave my schedule the way it is. If I feel I haven't had the start that I wanted to, maybe I'll fly out to the West Coast and play a little bit over there. It will mean that I have to go all the way to Dubai again.

But at the moment, I've got those three weeks off and after the Australia tournament to Dubai and that's really when the roll up is going to start for the Masters. At the moment there's no Singapore or any crazy flights on the schedule.

Q. I know it's all hypothetical at this point, but are you saying that if things don't go so well the first couple of weeks, or maybe even Australia you might think about coming out to California and then going back to Dubai?

ERNIE ELS: Yeah.

Q. But not La Costa?

ERNIE ELS: Well, maybe. You know, let's see. But at the moment, it's not on my schedule. Let's just see how the year starts out and then we'll take it from there.

Q. I also wanted to ask as a broad overview of the year, do you remember a time over the dozen or so years you've been here that there's been so many top players seemingly on top of their game starting off the year, I wonder if you could just talk about that?

ERNIE ELS: Yeah, it's true. I see Tiger has had a really good off-season. After THE TOUR Championship, he won in Japan and it seems like he's really playing well in his home tournament; he played well there.

You know, Vijay is the man at the moment. Obviously as we all know. Phil, he shot 59 at Poipu Bay which is quite impressive. Myself here, I had a good year. So yeah, there's a lot of players. I think Retief, you've got to mention Retief here. He might have a great out year this year, I feel. He won THE TOUR Championship. He dominated down in South Africa on a tough course. So he's looking good. You've got to look at Mike Weir, Davis Love, which was a quiet year for him last year, but he can really play well. There's a whole bunch of players.

Q. Can you see this bunch that you talk about could sustain the level for the course of the year?

ERNIE ELS: Yeah, I think so. I think those guys that I just mentioned, they have been around for a long time, and they have got their set schedules that they play and they have done well in major championships. These guys, they have been around a long time.

Yeah, I can definitely see those guys play all throughout the season, they stay in good shape. They have got good -- what's the word, they know how to prepare themselves week-in and week-out.

Q. Having been a regular visitor over the years to Phuket, did that sort of bring home the tsunami?

ERNIE ELS: Yeah, that was terrible. It seemed like it came out like a light, if you can call it that way. Yeah, it was terrible. We've traveled over there many years now and it's a tragedy, you know, obviously. So I don't know what it's going to do for the tourism in that part of the world, but it's obviously really hit them very hard.

Q. Where you normally stay there, would you have been in harm's way?

ERNIE ELS: Well, yeah, we last February we spent ten days Amanpuri. And actually Ricci just gave me a ride over here, and you know one of those pictures those people took was at one of the hotels he stayed at when we were there last year in February. Yeah, definitely it would have affected us.

But, you know, as I said, I think Phuket came out pretty light. Indonesia, that got hit really hard.

Q. Anything new in the bag this year?

ERNIE ELS: No -- actually, yeah. After I had that mishap with my putter, they actually got me two putters, Scotty Cameron. I'm looking at them now, I'm actually very excited to see them for the first time. So I might have a new putter.

Q. Oh, TOUR Championship, that's right.

ERNIE ELS: Yeah, end of the year.

TODD BUDNICK: Thanks, Ernie.

End of FastScripts.

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