Quotes from Ernie Els

I'm sure you have a hole at your course where you love to hit the tee shot. You can't wait to get up there and bomb away because the fairway is wide, or the hole always plays downwind.

One of my tendencies is to let the ball drift too far forward in my stance, and it's something I've been working on with David Leadbetter.

It is just a crazy life as a sportsman. My daughter, Sam, wants to go into tennis, and I tell her, 'No, you don't want to go into professional sport.'

I think most amateurs dread playing a 180-plus-yard par 3 even more than a hard par 4. Part of it is psychological: You think you should be getting a breather, distance-wise, and instead, you get hit with a long iron or hybrid shot over trouble.

I use a 1994 South African 5 rand coin to mark my ball. It reminds me of my '94 U.S. Open win at Oakmont.

I prefer old-world wines like Lafite Rothschild and Margaux.

For the average player, most three-putts happen because of a poorly judged first putt from long range.

There's so much more to life than golf. Family is always first.

For all the fun, don't forget: I always knew when to put my golf balls down and practice.

The key is to hit the ball first, then the sand. Even if you catch it a bit thin, you'll still get plenty of run. Hitting it fat is what you want to avoid.

You have to know how to read your lie and take a calculated risk when you hit out of the rough.

I almost never hit a shot all out, and I make a conscious effort to swing my long clubs just as I do my wedges. Keep this in mind when hitting your fairway woods.

Throughout my career, I've been sponsored by several different equipment companies - Lynx, Titleist, Callaway.

I have to believe that if I keep doing what I'm doing, the results will reflect that, and I'll give myself plenty more opportunities to win.

When you're hitting a fairway wood, you've got a lot of real estate to cover to get to your target. Your first instinct is probably to give it a little more power because you're worried about coming up short.

During a tournament, I'm not thinking about mechanics at all. I'm in scoring mode.

I'd like to win the Masters and the PGA and complete the career Grand Slam.

You should never get set over the ball and then aim your putter face. If you do it in that order, you can easily lose sight of your intended line. Instead, aim the face down your line first, then settle your body into position.

Spin is a tricky thing. When you're trying to avoid it - say, on a tee shot, where sidespin puts you in the trees - it's easy to make it happen.

The biggest mistake is trying to pinch down on the ball and ripping out a big divot, often hitting the ground before the ball. You'll dig up some turf, but you won't create much backspin.

Right before I start the putter back, I think about making solid contact. This brings your attention to the back of the ball and helps keep your head still at impact, which is a must. Many amateurs take a peek down the line too soon, and that can cause all sorts of mis-hits.

I never thought I'd be comfortable living outside South Africa, but we love London. Our two kids were born here.

The good kind of spin - backspin - comes from hitting the ball cleanly, then making a divot after impact.

For the most part, when you play a full shot from the primary rough at your course, you're gauging how close to a standard shot you can hit based on your lie in the grass.