Charity may well begin at home but, as Ernie Els proved in the final of the HSBC World Match Play Championship, so does untold riches.
The South African beat Angel Cabrera of Argentina 6 and 4 over the Wentworth Club course he helped to redesign and where he resides to capture the title for a record seventh time.
Just six days ahead of his 38th birthday, Els plundered another £1,000,000 for four days work in which he despatched Colin Montgomerie, Andres Romero, Henrik Stenson and, finally, the reigning US Open Champion.
It was Els’s first victory since last December and his 24th in total on The European Tour International Schedule. However, when it comes to match play on his own doorstep, Els can be well nigh invincible.
He reeled off three victories between 1994 and 1996 then repeated that feat by setting a new record of victories in 2002, 2003 and 2004. Now, in the final year of HSBC’s sponsorship, his passion for the ‘head to head’ game paid off again as he claimed the title and that tasty winner’s cheque, hoisting his overall earnings from that one event to a staggering £3,750,000.
Els established an early lead over Cabrera in the 36 hole final and, as the sun beat down, the Springbok trampled on the Puma in an early confrontation between South Africa and Argentina prior to the Rugby World Cup semi-final in Paris.
Els kept up a brisk pace all day, not surprisingly, perhaps, as his next task was to climb aboard a private jet carrying him to the French capital to watch the aforementioned rugby match.
Victory took Els to the top of The European Tour Order of Merit ahead of Open Champion Padraig Harrington and Justin Rose, both of whom lost in the first round at Wentworth Club.
He admitted it was a sweet feeling to win again, especially after a few close calls during the season and some strong performances in The Open and the US PGA Championship. He said: “To win this tournament seven times is amazing. I never thought I would do that. It’s amazing. Wonderful.”
Els, who won the first hole in the morning and was never pegged back to equality, was clearly thrilled to get back to holding some silverware. He added: “This is a very important tournament to me and my career. We had some really fine players here this week and it needed good golf to get through.
“Obviously the World Number One, Mr Woods, wasn’t here this week but it’s a tough one to win. It’s very satisfying to win any tournament but I’ve always been a fan of this kind of match play event.
“I’ve played some good golf these last two years and although it might seem that I’m a very patient guy, in fact I am quite impatient when it comes to getting results. So to get a win, and to play the way I did this week, is really satisfying. Hopefully this opens up the doors for me to get other wins.”
Out in 31 to Cabrera’s 35, Els was three up and in a strong position – one he also held at the lunchtime break. At the 21st, Els looked in trouble but somehow contrived to get up and down for a par four, while the Argentina bogeyed. Suddenly Els was four up and in the driving seat.
Cabrera dug deep and reduced the deficit to two holes after 27 holes, but a birdie two at the 28th broke the US Open Champion’s resistence and Els collectd the 30th, 31st and 32nd for a 6 and 4 margin of victory.
Despite his defeat, Cabrera was full of praise for an opponent he described as the ‘King of Wentworth’. He said: “I played my best today but it wasn’t enough. Ernie played very. He lives here, he knows the course. It is his own back-yard. He is very comfortable here.
“Still, 2007 has been a great year for me. This week has been great and, of course, winning the US Open has changed my life. I congratulate Ernie – he is a great champion – but I hope that the Pumas have better luck than I did!”
