Watch two top-tier professional golfers get angry trying to make a hole-in-one

Editor’s note: Ernie Els is writing a blog in 2017 and this is his latest installment. For more information on the World Golf Hall of Famer, visit www.ernieels.com. This week I was due to make the journey over to Europe for the KLM Open, but events here in Florida over the weekend forced me into having to withdraw. It’s a real shame because I was looking forward to teeing it up there for what would have been the fifth time in my career, and the first since 2001, but you know…sometimes Mother Nature has other plans! As most of you will have seen from the television coverage, Hurricane Irma caused scenes of total carnage as it blew across the Caribbean. My heart goes out to all those affected there. Eventually, the Hurricane made landfall in Florida on Sunday. Like millions of others, we had to evacuate our home and, as you can imagine, it’s been a very worrying time for everyone in this part of the U.S. So obviously, my primary concern right now and over the coming few days is to support my family and also our friends and employees as we come to terms with the aftermath of this devastating storm. It’s going to be a tough time as we all make our way back to our homes, but we’ll all pull together. I just want to take this opportunity to send my best wishes to everyone at the KLM Open and I hope that it’s a great week for everyone involved. Hopefully I can tee it up there in 2018. For now, then, I’ll just update you on a few other items of news. First of all, thank you to everyone who took part in the latest Drive to SA Open fundraiser held last week at my first golf club, Kempton Park. I hear it was a wonderful day. Thank you to Emperors Palace, Concept Recoveries and Courtney Bam. Also Chantelle Bruyns, Mike Sebanz and all the staff at Kempton Park for being such great hosts. We really appreciate your support. On a different note, I want to say what an honor it was to receive the 2017 Heisman Humanitarian Award at a ceremony during an Els for Autism Golf Challenge event at Liberty National on Aug. 28. It’s wonderful to receive these awards, not because that’s what we’re chasing, but because it is a reflection on how far we’ve come and how much of an impact we’re starting to have in our mission to better the lives of autistic children. These awards validate what we’re doing and really, they’re a pat on the back for our dedicated team at Els for Autism. Obviously, my name is up-front, but the whole movement, and all the great work that’s been achieved since we established the Foundation in 2009, that’s down to my wife Liezl and her team. They are amazing. For more information on The Els Center of Excellence, click here.  That event at Liberty National was, as I said, part of this year’s Golf Challenge series. Once again, through the support of our partners, golfers and donors, it’s been a successful campaign. We’re almost at the end of the schedule and we now have one eye on the Grand Finale at the spectacular Breakers Resort in Florida later next month. It’s not too late to punch your ticket there, so visit if you’d like to take part. Of course, being at Liberty National a couple of weeks ago gave me a chance to get reacquainted with the host venue for this month’s Presidents Cup. As it happened, Branden Grace had kindly come along on the day to support Els for Autism, so he and I snuck out and played a few holes together. To be honest, it still feels a little weird for me to not be on the playing side, but at the same time it’s an honor to be part of Nick Price’s team. I’m there to help and motivate the guys and, whatever that entails, trust me I’ll do it. On that note, I’ll leave it there for now and write again in the build-up to the Presidents Cup. In the meantime, you can, of course, follow me on Twitter @TheBig_Easy.

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CHARLOTTE, N.C. – Max Homa said he was shaking when he stepped to Quail Hollow’s first tee Saturday afternoon. He was playing with Charlotte’s adopted son, one of the biggest names in golf, on his birthday. The crowd serenaded Rory McIlroy on the first tee, while Homa just stood and watched. “I felt like a sideshow out there,â€� he said. On Sunday, he’ll be the center of attention. Homa will play in the Wells Fargo Championship’s final group with Jason Dufner. Both players are atop the leaderboard after fighting out of the depths of a deep slump. They share the lead with a cancer survivor, Joel Dahmen. The trio is tied at 11-under 202. Pat Perez is one shot back, and several big names are still close enough to cause concern. McIlroy, the man whose record at Quail Hollow is unmatched, is two back. The reigning FedExCup champion, Justin Rose, is three behind. Paul Casey is at 7 under, while Sergio Garcia, Rickie Fowler and Patrick Reed are among the names who are five back. Sunday nerves aren’t some overblown storyline. They’re very real. But the co-leaders have all been steeled by hardship. Dufner is a major champion who has struggled to break par this year. The Wells Fargo is his ninth event of 2019. He was 27 over par in the first eight. He made it to Sunday just once. And he didn’t finish under par in a single event before this week. He is 188th in the FedExCup standings. He has five PGA TOUR victories, including the 2013 PGA Championship, but hasn’t won since the 2017 Memorial Tournament presented by Nationwide. That experience will be invaluable come Sunday, though. “I felt good out there and I expect to feel good tomorrow,â€� Dufner said. He has converted three of his seven 54-hole leads into victory. Dahmen and Homa are in this position for the first time. The two first-timers have taken different paths to get here. Homa won the NCAA individual title in his senior year at Cal and was a contemporary of Justin Thomas. They played on the same Walker Cup team and both played their first PGA TOUR event as a pro at the 2013 Safeway Open. Homa finished ninth. Thomas missed the 54-hole cut. Dahmen, meanwhile, fought testicular cancer in the midst of a five-year stint on the Mackenzie Tour-PGA TOUR Canada. Homa and Thomas only needed one season to graduate from the Web.com Tour. They were both PGA TOUR rookies in 2015, but their careers went different directions. Thomas has become a FedExCup champion and major winner, while Homa has bounced between the PGA TOUR and Web.com Tour. Homa fell for the lie that he had to get substantially better to have a long PGA TOUR career. His driver became a liability, though. Related: Tee times | Dufner, Homa prove there’s light at the end of the tunnel | Dahmen proves he can handle the pressure | Watch PGA TOUR LIVE: 8:30 a.m. ET Two years ago, he made less than $20,000 on the PGA TOUR. He made just two cuts in 17 starts and was 61 over par for the season. This is his third crack at the TOUR. Reminding himself of his past success has helped him regain his confidence. Those previous victories, even if they were at lower levels, have proven to him that he can handle the Sunday pressure. He’s a two-time winner on the Web.com Tour. “I’m nervous all morning and I get the club in my hand and it’s just the same thing,â€� Homa said. “I feel very comfortable when I’m playing good and I think that’s it. My brain clicked in and I piped it off No. 1, hit a great 8-iron.â€� Like Homa, Dahmen is in his third season on TOUR. He took a different path, though. At 31, he’s three years older than Homa. Dahmen’s cancer diagnosis has given him a different perspective. “I’ve known life and death, and this isn’t it,â€� he said earlier this week. Just like Homa gained valuable experience playing Saturday with McIlroy, Dahmen learned from a third-round pairing with one of golf’s superstars. He played with Tiger Woods in the third round of last year’s Quicken Loans National, shooting a 69 to Woods’ 68. Dahmen was 3 over par on his first five holes Saturday, but was 4 under the rest of the way. He eagled the par-4 eighth and made three back-nine birdies. Dahmen has been the first-round leader in three of his past five starts. Sundays are a different story, though. “I can’t wait to wake up,â€� Dahmen said. “I might not sleep very well tonight, probably can’t sleep in, but I mean, I love it. This is competing against the best. I mean, that leaderboard is pretty stacked, so I’m excited.â€�

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