Ernie Els: ‘Out on the range I was getting strange looks’

Those of a cruel disposition call him the Big Difficult but anyone who has dealt with Ernie Els will attest to his status as the gentle giant of the game.

He dislikes the moniker The Big Easy with a passion because his silky smooth swing was dug out of the dirt of South Africa and not handed to him from above.

Even with four majors on his dining room table, the game has been cruel to the big man, whose six-putt from three feet for a nine on the first hole in the opening round made news worldwide and reduced a great player to ridicule.