European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - June 13, 2007, Darmstadt, Hesse                                June stars and stripes Page 37 since Oakmont Els blessed and cursed big easy Lucky to be but where Are major wins by Doug Ferguson the associated press there Are times when Ernie Els feels blessed to have won three major championships and 60 titles around the perhaps none More significant than his playoff Victory at Oakmont in the 1994 open that effectively launched his considering a frightening Acci he is Lucky to even be play ing Els had finished his first year As a professional when he went out one night in South Africa Dur ing the christinas his Friend was driving Home when the car flipped and hit a then Slid Down the Road on its my hand was caught Between my body and the tar Els it scraped my whole hand it was almost they had to do plastic and my Fin gels Are stir a messed so you in Happy to be but there Are times when Els feels cursed to return to Oakmont having won Only two More majors since that open it was at the end of 1994 when his global travels took him to thai land for the Johnnie Walker asian the first time he met a scrawny kid from califor Nia who had won the Amateur that summer and was in his freshman year at we were talking on the put Ting Tiger Woods re he Why Are you going to Rouege you should turn pro right if he had a Mulligan on that con Els might have tried convincing Woods to go to medi Cal As much As his career is de fined by an easy swing that gave Els his the big perhaps no other Active player has been measured against Woods for so Gene Ernie Els watches his shot out of a Bunker in front of the ninth Green during a practice round for the open at Oakmont country Els won the open in the last time it was played at no one else has finished second to Woods More often seven times around the three in a few other players have reason to wonder How their Ca Reers might have been different without Woods i think if he want i maybe could have won a couple Els that not Tak ing anything away from the rest of the but Hes very Domi and Hes been up there More than any other player More con if you win tournaments with him in the youve really accomplished Els returns to Oakmont hopeful that a few Good vibes could be the spark he needs to get his career Back on he is 37 and has set a three year goal of returning to 1 in the a spot he Hast occupied since when Woods was retooling his Els has expanded his interests outside As most stars have de signing Golf courses and develop ing a wine his biggest obstacle is recover ing from torn ligaments in his left knee while tubing in the Mediterranean two Summers Els feels As though his knee fully has but he is getting impatient waiting on the in pushing it a Els instead of taking it for what it in trying to hit shots i dont Normay hit to get Back two shots i in telling this is As Good As i can hit in feeling in some the injury brought a forced break that could not have come at a better Els emotionally was devastated from when he had a Chance to win All four majors and came up Phil Mickelson beat him at the masters with an 18foot Birdie putt on the last he played in the last group of the open and shot 80 at Shinn Ecock he went head Ohead with Jour Neyman Todd Hamilton Over the final 40 holes at the British losing in a and he finished his summer with a three putt bogey from 100 feet at the pea championship to miss a playoff by one he has won twice in South Afri Ca since knee but his last Victory was three years its just that what it boils Down Woods Hes got to put himself in the and he Hast done Hes won but he Hast done it the first big Victory came at which Els won in spite of he took control on the Back and with Loren Roberts and Colin Montgomerie already in at 5under Els Only needed a Par on the 18th Hole to with out looking at a How he thought he needed Birdie to he hit Driver into the and wound up having to make a 5foot bogey putt to get into the the next he overcame a bogey triple bogey Start and played 1 under the rest of the beating Roberts on the 20th at theres not too much you Haven had too Many Els i Felt Good with the Golf course and everything i Felt it was my time to and when you feel that you know you can do so that was going to be my first win of that the Way i he want the Only one who Felt that two time open Champion Curtis strange called him the next a quote that was printed As the next because of Stranges Southern Given How Els either version seemed when he won at i thought hed be the Best player in the world for Many strange even when Tiger came i always thought Ernie would be the Guy to go shoulder shoulder with Hes blessed with and i a Hes cursed with when you dont achieve others people Label you an Frank Nobilo played with Els in the final round at Nick Faldo and Greg Norman were the top two players in the world rank but Els surely seemed on his Way to replacing Ernie had All the and it was Pretiger said Nobi who now works for the Golf you knew he was going to inherit the 1 it was just a matter of and in three everything was shaken maybe it would have been Dif Ferent had Els captured a few More majors before Woods turned he blew a three shot Lead in the final round of the 95 pea and a Balky Putter left him two shots behind Tom Lehman at the 96 British Woods won the masters by 12 shots in Els answered with a second Victory in the open at but he didst win another major for five and Woods shattered the ceiling on his Way to the Els now is at somewhat of a still believing he has the game to Challenge still waiting for something to give him perhaps a return to Oak Mont is what he i see now How Tough it is to win a Els when it it was quite a but it was something that i needed and it ready jump started my i Felt there was a lot More to going Back it win be Earnhardt to announce plans for 2008 on wednesday by Jenna Fryer the associated press Dale Earnhardt has decided where he will drive next and All signs Point to Hendrick to Nastars most popular Driver called a wednesday news conference at his race or and spokesman Mike Davis said it was to announce his plans for 2008 and its the same site where Junior announced May 10 he would leave Dei and enter the free agent that move ignited a whirlwind of recruit ing rarely scene in and theres been nonstop talk regarding where earn Hardt would end Hes made shop visits and met with various car owners while he trying to make a his Kelley Earnhardt is handling his negotiations and has maintained their first Choice was to keep earn Hardt in a she has said the majority of her conversations have been with Nastars top Chevy Hendrick is the Best in Lascar right with 10 wins through the first 15 Points races this speculation grew monday night that Earnhardt was close to a Deal with Hen but officials declined comment tues Elledge did not respond to messages from the associated Rick Hendrick currently has four Drivers under and told the a last month there was no room at the inn for Lascar rules permit a car owner to Field four Sextel cup but multiple sources speaking to the a on condition of anonymity because Earnhardt plans have not been announced said Hendrick officials have been working for nearly three weeks to Fig ure out How to bring the Star Driver into the one scenario could put Earnhardt into the 5 car that Kyle Busch currently Busch is under contract through and Hendrick has said he wanted to sign the 22yearold Driver to an but there Are rumblings Busch has asked to be released from his asked if that was Hendrick spokes Man Jesse Essex we dont comment on contractual Busch was testing in Milwaukee on tues Day and not available to its still possible Earnhardt could end up at Richard Childress where his father won six of his seven or Joe Gibbs but Childress is out of the and the assistant to Gibbs president Gibbs said Gibbs is away All