SA’s four-time major champion Ernie Els has spoken highly of 2025 Open Champion Scottie Scheffler and has backed the Texan to become one of the all-time greats after winning The Open.
Scheffler, 29, blew the rest of the field away to win his fourth major title last week and add the Claret Jug to his two Masters victories and win at the PGA Championship.
It was a performance that had more than a trace of Woods at his very best.
Scheffler is the first world No 1 to win The Open since Woods in 2006 and has now won all four of his majors having led after 54-holes - a trait Woods was famously known for after converting an overnight lead into a major title 14 times.
ILLUSTRIOUS COMPANY
Both men also took 1197 days to win their fourth major from the date of their first triumph, and the pair are two of only four players – the other two being Jack Nicklaus and Gary Player – to win the Masters, The Open and PGA Championship before the age of 30.
And two-time Open Champion, and fellow four-time major winner, Els thinks as long as Scheffler continues to dominate, his name will carry on being mentioned alongside Woods’s.
“There’s always going to be similarities between Scottie Scheffler and Tiger because of the way he’s performing and the way he’s winning,” said Els, speaking at the launch of his new golf club, Els Club Vilamoura.
“It’s very much the way Tiger did things. He takes leads and he doesn’t relinquish those leads. He’s not scared of winning anymore, he knows how to win. He’s becoming ruthless in that manner.
“His game is awesome. He’s got no real weakness. His putting is one of his strengths now, so all in all, he’s very, very interesting to watch.
“I’d love to see what he does in the next five to 10 years.”
US DOMINATION
Scheffler’s triumph at The Open also continues the recent stronghold on the competition held by US players.
The last three Claret Jugs have been lifted by those who hail from across the Atlantic thanks to Xander Schauffele and Brian Harman’s wins in 2024 and 2023 respectively.
For Els, it dispels the myth about Americans struggling on links courses.
“I think you adapt,” continued the South African, who won his first Open at Muirfield in 2002 before winning the Claret Jug 10 years later at Royal Lytham & St Annes.
“When you're a good ball striker, and you have to be a good ball striker on links land, if you can strike the ball out of the middle of a club, you will learn how to play on links.
“It's normally a good ball striker who will get himself to learn how to play. Scottie Scheffler has learned how to do that. David Duval did that, Phil Mickelson too.
“There are a lot of players that have done that and had success on links courses that have never really played links.
“When you find your way around links, you're going to have success, and that's what's going on.”
EXHIBITION GOLF
Els played a nine-hole exhibition to open the Els Club Vilamoura alongside Scottish legend Colin Montgomerie and 2001 Open Champion David Duval.
The Algarve course is a championship-standard 18-hole golf course that features a luxury clubhouse and signature amenities such as the 261 Bar, and was built on the redesigned Victoria course, which hosted the Portugal Masters from 2007 to 2022.
It will host the new PGA Champions Tour event, the Portugal Invitational, after signing a five-year deal.
The first edition of the event is set to be held between 31 July to 2 August 2026.
Els said: “Golf is in the pretty sweet spot at the moment and [creating this course] has been a really nice venture. We want the conditions to be absolutely perfect and for people to have a great experience and good food.”
Montgomerie added: “The golf course is superb, and the clubhouse is fantastic. It’s not just a course for the present; it’s a course for the future as well.”
Courtesy of Beat Media Group