Ernie Els excelled as a youth at just about every sport. He decided golf was his strongest and favorite sport; in 1984 at age 14 he won the Junior World title in San Diego, beating local favorite Phil Mickelson. Ernie uses an Odyssey putter and is known as "The Big Easy" for his fluid swing and calm, easygoing demeanor. He competes globally and on the PGA Tour; he has 67 professional career victories, including three major championships (the U.S. Open in ‘94 and ‘97, and the British Open,) two World Golf Championships and a record seven World Matchplay titles.
In 1998, he received lifetime membership from the PGA European Tour. Ernie had two PGA Tour wins in 2010 – the WGC-CA Championship and The Arnold Palmer Invitational. Els also won the PGA Grand Slam of Golf that October and the South African Open that December. He was inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame on May 9.