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BALLANTINE'S CHAMPIONSHIP

April 21, 2010

Ernie Els

JEJU ISLAND, SOUTH KOREA

STEVE TODD: Ernie many thanks for joining us in the media centre at Pinx Golf Club. It's always a pleasure to see you.
ERNIE ELS: Thank you.
STEVE TODD: You come to us in great form, winner of the WGC at Doral and Arnold Palmer Invitational, Top-20 in the Masters. Just how good are you feeling about your game at the moment.
ERNIE ELS: Thank you, it's nice to be back. Obviously, yeah, I've had a pretty good start to the season. Played mostly in the U.S. I haven't travelled too much this year, and I think it's helped me, my game.
The win in Miami was big for me. Got a lot of confidence back. And then obviously Bay Hill was a run from that. Maybe played a bit too much golf. Maybe I should have taken the week off before the Masters, so I was a bit jaded at the Masters, but I still had a top 20.
You know, the season's been going well this year.
STEVE TODD: You tied fourth here last year, maybe one or two putts, it might have been even better. Your hopes for this week?
ERNIE ELS: Well, hopefully the weather is a little better. The weather was very tough last year.
Yeah, I had a good tournament last year. So many people could win it last year, and my putt on 18 just missed and I missed one on 17, as well. But I had a very nice week last year. I enjoyed it, except for maybe the weather. (Chuckling).

Q. So if you could tell us the difference between the PGA Tour and The European Tour and what would be sort of the merits or advantages of The European Tour.
ERNIE ELS: Well, that's a good question. There's quite a few things, but you know, The European Tour now is really a world tour. You know, you play in a lot of different conditions. I think that's the biggest difference, is the conditions. In the U.S. in March, you play the Florida Swing, so it's very similar, the greens and stuff, so you can get into a flow a little bit more. But The European Tour is the best training ground in the world, because you play, as I said, different conditions against different players, different cultures. So you learn a lot more about your game on The European Tour.

Q. You said you felt a bit tired at the Masters. Are you feeling refreshed after that short break, and what did you do? Did you just relax or what have you been up to since?
ERNIE ELS: Yeah, you know, I didn't do anything. I mean, I went home Sunday night after the Masters and I was home all week. The weather was great. I was in the pool with the kids, school run in the morning and afternoon. I didn't touch a club until I came here on Monday. I did an SAP company day Monday. I practised yesterday and played today.
So I feel ready to go now and I have a little easier stretch into the U.S. Open. My reason playing so much was to try and get form in March, and it came rapidly (chuckling), and then I couldn't pull out of tournaments. That would have been unfair. That was my reason.

Q. First of all, you talked about The European Tour and the U.S. Tour, so you've travelled all over the world, played in different golf courses and have a lot of experience; and so does the Pinx Golf Club remind you of another golf course that you can find somewhere else in the world?
ERNIE ELS: There's a lot of slope on this golf course. So first one that comes to mind with some nice views that you can see the views -- today there was a couple of times; it reminds me a little bit of Hawaii a little bit with the slope.
But then again, the grass that we play on, because you get cold weather here, and it's early in the season, it's very much like Europe, the actual soil, the grass.
But the scenery looks like Hawaii. So it's a big contrast here, but you know, it's a golf course if the weather conditions are nice, you can really make a lot of birdies. So it lends yourself for attacking golf. But then if the weather is not good like last year, then it's just trying to play safe.

Q. So you're from South Africa and in 2010 the World Cup games are going to be held in South Africa. So my question has to do with football. You are known to be a Manchester United fan, so I would like to ask you what you think are sort of the attractiveness and strengths of golf and soccer, and if you can talk about that?
ERNIE ELS: Well, my real passion is rugby, because I played rugby. But everybody has to have a team that you follow and I've been following Manchester United since 1979 when I was ten years old, for some reason, I don't know why. In South Africa, the fans follow the big four or big five clubs in England, and so be it that I started following Manchester United.
On the World Cup in South Africa is going to be unbelievable. The stadiums, they have finished the stadiums. Hopefully people who have never been to South Africa come down to experience the country. It's a vast country with very different scenery, should I say. We have got oceans and we have got deserts and we have got bush and we have got animals. We've got everything down there.
It's a wonderful time of the year to watch wildlife. It's in the middle of our winter, so I think we'll have a great time.
And golf and football, I don't think there's too much in common (laughing). I like to watch football and I think they are great athletes. But I don't think we can -- we don't train like football players. They are too fit.

Q. And second questions was any favourite athletes from Manchester United?
ERNIE ELS: Yeah, I think Mr. Park, he's not bad. (Laughter) He's having a good season this year.

Q. So with all great players, there's up-and-downs, so for instance, if you make a bogey, how do you try to get out of that if you're not feeling good? And on the opposite side, if you strike an eagle, you might get over-excited; how do you control your feelings and emotions? Maybe do you have your own special way of controlling your emotions for feelings?
ERNIE ELS: Yeah, I think it's a good question. I think, you know, golf is very much a mental game like a lot of sport. You have to prepare yourself. I think the wonderful thing about golf is you have different personalities that play the game. Nobody is the same. So some people react differently to good stuff and bad stuff. Some people like to really get it out of their system when they make a bad shot, and either throw a club or swear or just get it out. And you know, when they make birdies or eagles, they have the same reactions. They like to, I would say play passionate, emotional golf. And then some other guys are probably better off just trying to keep a very even keel whether you play good or bad, and just try and keep your calm, because those kind of personalities, if they have to overreact, you know, their heart rate will rise and they will go out of their comfort zone. Just whatever makes you feel comfortable, that's the way you have to play the game.

Q. So this is not your first golf tournament in Korea. You've been to Korea several times. Do you have a favourite Korean food? And this time back here in Korea, was there something that you wanted to eat again?
ERNIE ELS: I like the spices over here. I like my spices and you guys over here also have like hot food. There's a vegetable here that's kind of -- I'm not sure what it's called, but it's really hot. So I really like that. And then all of the food here is wonderful. You know, the pork here in Jeju, I'm kind of a meat lover, so it's a different pork here, it's a darker pork. That's really a nice meal for me. But yeah, most of the stuff's good.

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