Twelve-time major winner Ernie Els, the popular two-time champion of The Open, today announced his withdrawal from this year’s tournament. Needless to say, hundreds of thousands of fans and more than a few competitors are shocked by this decision. Els’ impact at The Open has already been felt, having recently qualified for two other major championships.
Els secured his first Open victory back in 2002 at Muirfield, emerging victorious from a thrilling four-man playoff. His astounding performance won him the trophy and a place in golf history as one of the great golfers of his time. Just ten years later, in 2012, he won his second Open Championship at Royal Lytham & St. Annes. Nothing touched the Tiger, however, for this victory revealed just how exceptional Woods was on the golf course.
This exemption provides Els with the option to skip The Open until he is 60 years old. He has announced that he’s sitting this contest out. He compared the move to his earlier decision to withdraw from The Players Championship. He’d qualified for that tournament by winning the Kaulig Companies Championship at Firestone in 2024.
In his place, Si Woo Kim will be replacing him in the field for The Open Championship. Kim’s winning entry showcases the breathtaking thrill of high-level competitive golf. Now, at long last, he has the opportunity to flaunt those skills on one of the sport’s biggest and most illustrious stages.
Els’s decision also has implications for his time spent in the arena of competitive golf going forward. Even so, he remains an iconic figure in the sport today. Nonetheless, his choice not to race in any of these marquee events is a sign of growing change of competitive intent. Fans and fellow professional players will forever mourn missing the chance to see him compete this year.
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