Els grand in Slam
By Ken Sakamoto, Star-Bulletin
Ernie Els reacts to making a birdie on the last hole to set the 18-hole record in the MasterCard PGA Grand Slam.

The U.S. Open champion set 18- and 36-hole records en route to a three-stroke victory

By Bill Kwon
Star-Bulletin

POIPU, Kauai - The champion of champions did it in championship style.

Ernie Els shot a tournament-record 7-under-par 65 yesterday to win the MasterCard PGA Grand Slam.

Els finished at 11-under 133 in the $1 million showdown involving golf's four major champions. That broke Tom Lehman's record of 134 set last year.

Els birdied the par-5, 550-yard finishing hole to finish at 65, one better than Greg Norman in 1994.

Els, the U.S. Open champion, got his money's worth, capturing the $400,000 top prize. Meanwhile, the Garden Island's largest golf gallery got its money's worth watching Tiger Woods, who finished second, three strokes back.

Woods, the Masters champion, wowed even himself with two shots from water-filled bunkers. One led to a birdie at 14 and the other a world-class par at 16. The first-day leader finished at 70-136 and earned $250,000.

Third place and $200,000 went to Davis Love III, the PGA Championship winner who won the Lincoln-Mercury Kapalua International on Maui 10 days ago.

Justin Leonard, the British Open champion, never recovered from his first-round 77 to finish fourth, which paid $150,000.

''When Ernie made par on the first hole yesterday (Monday), that was as big a lead as he needed on me,'' Leonard said jokingly. He will replace Fred Couples as Love's American partner in the World Cup at Kiawah Island, S.C., this weekend.

Els also is headed there to represent South Africa and defend his individual title.

It was supposed to have been the Tiger Show. But Els, the only international player to win the U.S. Open twice, took center stage.

He was the only one of the four who had played the Poipu Bay Resort course before, and he admitted it was an advantage, especially in reading the greens.

''I had a pretty good feel of the greens and what to expect this week,'' said Els, who placed third here in 1994. He showed it with a deft putting touch, especially on the front nine, where he shot a 31.

''Obviously my putter got red-hot on the front nine,'' said Els, who overtook Woods with a four-foot birdie putt at the par-3, 152-yard seventh hole.

''Ernie got off to a great start and I didn't make the putts early when I had a chance,'' Woods said. ''For a guy that big, he has a nice touch. He has a touch to die for.''

Tiger wasn't too shabby either. Wearing his good-luck red, Woods made the shot of the day out of the greenside bunker at the par-4, 501-yard 16th hole.

After being allowed a second drop from water in the sand, Woods blasted to three feet and saved par.

''Wow, I've got to give myself a hand for that one,'' Woods said after climbing out of the trap.

''Ernie had a good front nine. He kind of kept me out of it,'' said Love, who birdied four of the first five holes to get back into contention. But he missed seven makeable birdie putts, including one that stopped just short on No. 9.

''I'm thankful that Tiger and Davis didn't get off on a hot streak,'' Els said.

''What about me?,'' asked Leonard, feigning a hurt look.

''You had a hot streak. You made about seven pars in a row there. Not bad,'' Els replied.

Leonard was never in it after his 77 on the first day, especially after he took a double-bogey 6 on the 16th hole.

''The way he's going, Justin's lucky he doesn't finish fifth,'' said David Feherty, the golf analyst for TBS.

The foursome played the final 18 holes in soggy conditions after two inches of rain fell overnight on the 6,957-yard seaside course, leaving water in a majority of its 86 sand bunkers.

The players were allowed to lift, clean and place their ball on the fairways.

While not as large as the first day, the gallery was estimated at 5,000.

''I didn't think we were going to play,'' Els said before the start of the final round.

''It was surprising,'' added Love.

This was the Grand Slam's final year of a four-year contract at Poipu Bay.

''We're hoping to renew our contract,'' said Ron Kiaaina, Poipu Bay Resort's director of golf. ''We'd like to keep the event here.''