Ernie Els continued his recent run of good form with an opening five-under-par 67 on Friday in the first round of the PGA Tour Champions Dick’s Open at En-Joie Golf Club in Endicott, New York.
Els made seven birdies and two bogeys as he moved into a share of fourth, three strokes off the lead. Stephen Ames of Canada was on front after a flawless eight-under-par 64 gave him a one-stroke lead over Steve Allan of Australia. In third was Rocco Mediate of the United States on six-under. Els shared fourth with Paul Stankowski of the United States and Germany’s Bernhard Langer.
David Frost opened with a one-under-par 71 for a share of 39th, and Retief Goosen’s level-par 72 put him in a share of 48th.
Ames is seeking his third win of the season, while Allan had his lowest score in 32 rounds on the PGA Tour Champions as he looks for a second top-10 finish in his 12th start since turning 50 in October 2023.
Els came to this week’s event on the heels of back-to-back wins in his last two starts at the Principal Charity Classic and American Family Insurance Championship; finished third in last year’s Dick’s Open.
