Tiger Woods capable of winning majors in his forties, says Ernie Els
Wednesday 18 January 2017 09:24, UK
Ernie Els says age is no barrier to success for Tiger Woods as he attempts to add to his haul of 14 majors after an injury lay-off.
Woods experienced mixed results on his return to the course at the Hero World Challenge in December after 15 months out following his lengthy rehabilitation from back surgery.
He has committed to a busy schedule, starting at next week's Farmers Insurance Open, live on Sky Sports 4 HD, as he targets a return to full-time play. Els, who was 42 when he won the Open in 2012, says Tiger is still capable of winning majors after turning 41 in December.
"I am in my late 40s and he is just getting into them. There have been a few cases where we have won majors in our 40s, it doesn't happen that often but it does happen," Els said.
"If players like myself, Darren Clarke and Mark O'Meara won [majors] in our 40s, surely Tiger thinks he can do it too. I am sure it's on his agenda.
"Mentally, he is as strong as anybody but he needs to find some momentum at his favourite events and, if he gets that, he can start believing again. I would love to see him play like he did back in the 90s, but I am not sure that is going to happen."
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Els, a four-time major winner, says golf has benefited greatly from Woods' success and his remarkable rise to prominence since the American turned professional in 1996 and labelled his achievements as "incredible".
"It's been 20 years since he won his first major at the Masters and it's quite amazing what he has achieved," Els said.
"He has won 14 majors in that span and he was injured for at least three or four of those seasons, so it's really a major for every year he has been healthy as a professional. That's incredible.
"We would not be playing for the money we play for if it wasn't for Tiger, so we have to thank him for that, for what he has done for the game and it can only be good if he plays well."
The South African also believes that an in-form Woods would add even more value to the circuit, with golf currently boasting a bumper crop of top players at their peak, such as Jason Day, Rory McIlroy, Dustin Johnson, Jordan Spieth and Justin Thomas.
"There's a lot of excellent players out there, some of them playing great golf, so it will be great to see if Tiger can get back in the mix at some of the big events and create even more of a buzz," Els said.
