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ALFRED DUNHILL LINKS CHAMPIONSHIPOctober 3, 2012Ernie ElsCARNOUSTIE & KINGSBARNS, SCOTLAND SARAH GWYNN: Thank you very much for coming in today. You must be looking forward to getting back after your success in the summer. ERNIE ELS: Absolutely.  Great to be back. Just actually right now, flew in from London. Nice to see the sun shining. So yeah, I'm playing this afternoon. I'm going to play St. Andrews. Get the feel for the bounce again. I haven't played links obviously since July. So I'm really looking forward to catching up with friends and hopefully playing good golf. SARAH GWYNN: This is always a very special week; what in particular do you enjoy most about coming here. ERNIE ELS: Well, I think we've been playing the Dunhill Cup here, we played that since the early 90s. Then it changed format into the Dunhill Links Championship for the last 11 years or so. So it's a unique kind of a bonding week for the boys. You know, businessmen and sports men, previous legends from different sport getting together and playing golf, trying to play golf, some of us, and just getting together and having a good week on the links. Great dinners in the evening that happen. Yeah, it's a wonderful get‑together, basically. For the pros, it obviously gets quite serious over the weekend; if you're in contention, you have to try to win the golf tournament. Q. How much has the past two months meant to you, or how much has what happened in your life meant to you over the last two months? ERNIE ELS: Well, I would love to have had a break. It seems like I've been busy ever since then. I would love to have had a week off right after the Open, and I think I remark that in my speech. It's just golf ever since then. We've played‑‑ and it's been good. You know, this is my job, but sometimes you just need a little bit of time off and I would love to have had that week off. But then to the PGA and then to the FedExCup golf tournaments, and just haven't really had time to really reflect. I've had to do it on the road without being where I want to be. Q.  I'll put it a different way; how much do you think it's going to invigorate your career? ERNIE ELS: Well, it's changed everything. It's changed a lot of things. I'm 43 in a couple of weeks, so I'm not getting any younger. So you know, I've got to think of my future, and this obviously helps a lot. It gives me new hope and new confidence that for the next five years, I'm playing in every major. So I'm playing quite a few majors the next couple years, and I've got to think that I've got a chance to win, maybe hopefully one or a couple more even. I think next year, Muirfield comes to mind‑‑ the whole schedule next year is great for majors. You have Merion and so forth. So a lot of new hope. Q. (Inaudible.). ERNIE ELS: Well, I haven't really played great golf since then. Whatever the reason, I'm not sure. I'm trying hard. But I don't know, after the win, maybe subconsciously, you just kind of switch off a little bit. You kind of enjoy the win a little bit. And I think I've done that a bit. But it's nice to come back to links golf, come back to Scotland, and you know, who knows, it might just click here this week, working on my game and so forth. But I haven't really had the energy to really go for it. I think maybe this week could be a week where things turn around again. Q. After Darren won The Open, his game suffered a bit, is it almost inevitable that that happens‑‑ ERNIE ELS: I'm not sure. I don't want to sound cocky now. It's happened in my career before. Other times, I just kept going. I think maybe age has got something to do with it. When you put so much energy into it, and as I say, I've had such a hectic schedule afterwards; I really haven't had time to just relax and to play every week, and every week's been a big week. And you try and get yourself up but you're not quite up there mentally. But I've had a nice week off now. I watched a lot of The Ryder Cup obviously, and hopefully I'll get some energy out of that. Q. Following on The Ryder Cup, what happened there, would you like to have been part of that? ERNIE ELS: No, not at all. That must have been really a pressure cooker. I actually gave Paul McGinley a lift up this morning from London, so we had a nice chat. Yeah, unbelievable golf. I watched the whole Sunday like most of you guys obviously, and I thought it was quite incredible. Q. Can I ask, have you ever been late for a tee time like Rory almost was? ERNIE ELS: Yeah, many times. For different reasons now, I'm sure (laughing). Quite a few times, actually I've just made it to the first tee. I remember in Hawai'i once, I totally over slept and it was actually the first round of the tournament. And it's out‑of‑bounds left and right on the first hole. I just made it to the tee and dribbled something down the fairway, and actually played quite well to be honest and shot like 3‑ or 4‑under that day. But it's a quick wake‑up call when you're a bit late. But Rory, he's in great shape and he's obviously young. He didnÂ’t have too much time to warm up and I don't think it bothered him too much.       Q. Inaudible. ERNIE ELS: 3‑ or 4‑under that day, a quick wake‑up call. But Rory, he's in great shape and he's obviously young. He doesn't have too much time to warm up. I don't think bothered him too much. But I guess it was close. Q. The International Teamplaying the European ‑‑ inaudible. ERNIE ELS: No, no, we have got our Presidents Cup format and The Ryder Cup is the Ryder Cup, and I think right now, you cannot mess with that. That's one of the big sporting affairs and everybody wants to watch it. I think even non‑golfers watched The Ryder Cup. So it's really on a very different platform than The Presidents Cup at the moment. Q. Inaudible. ERNIE ELS: I don't know, you know, I mean, I'm sure even if they think about it they won't tell us. It's quite a amazing how they turned around. Whatever was bad or whatever flows in their veins, it's special stuff. Amazing golf. I mean, the shots that were hit, pressure putts and all of that, just amazing how they played. Q. (Inaudible.). ERNIE ELS: The vice captains? Tony Johnstone and Mark McNulty probably. Q. And Maruyama. ERNIE ELS: Yeah, guys that I know. I don't think the team know those guys‑‑ well, Mark and Tony, but they are great friends of mine and close to pricey. Maruyama played in a Presidents Cup and he can speak the language so to speak. So I think those are great guys. Q. Do you think Paul McGinley would be a good choice for Ryder Cup Captain next time around? ERNIE ELS: Absolutely, I think he ticks all the boxes and I think all the guys on that list, I read the paper this morning and I saw the list of guys and all of those guys are acceptable captains. They all were Ryder Cup members recently, they were all at Medinah last week, so it all makes sense. Each one them would be a great captain. It's just getting the timing of each person right. I think obviously Paul and Darren, all of those guys will be great captains. Q. Inaudible. ERNIE ELS: Yeah, I think so, but I can understand guys pulling out this week. As I just said, I played the whole FedExCup‑‑ since The Open championship, I think I had one week off. These guys still had The Ryder Cup and we all saw what energy they went through last week. Then to get on the plane and come over here, it's acceptable. If it's one time that guys can pull out of a tournament, even the stature of this event, there's a good case to be had there. I know Lee Westwood, I saw he pulled out last night; he's been going just like myself like a lot of guys. It's very difficult to keep getting yourself up for events. It's got to be understandable from the Tour and the organisers here, that some guyswill just not be up; it's probably better if they don't play, they will just be going through the motions here, so we've all been there. It's difficult. Tough schedule. SARAH GWYNN: Thanks, Ernie, good luck this week. FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports |
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