U.S. SENIOR OPEN CHAMPIONSHIP

July 4, 2026

Ernie Els

Scioto Country Club

Quick Quotes

Q. No birdies until 15, bogey on 14. Walk me through the mindset of the strong finish you had. What flipped the switch there?

ERNIE ELS: Let me just tell you about the front nine. It could have been -- I could have been 3-, 4-under on the front nine. Just the putts just didn't seem to find the hole.

Then 14 is a tough hole. I hit it just short of the green, and I chipped it up and missed a five-footer, so there was really no way.

I just kept going. Hit a good shot on 15 and finally made a putt. Then I made a bunker shot on 16. It's amazing how the game and my mindset changes when something positive happens. Then I hit two good shots on 18 and made the putt for birdie.

I'm really happy about the finish, but I just wish I had something going the front nine.

Q. How aggressive do you need to be tomorrow to apply pressure early and give yourself a legit shot on Sunday?

ERNIE ELS: Well, that was my mindset today was to get going today, try to get like a mid-60s. As it turns out, the guys are going low at the back of the field. It depends on conditions; if conditions get a bit more tricky, meaning if it gets firmer and windy, I can shoot something in the mid-60s, I might have a chance, but not everybody is going back.

Q. Going off of that, what challenges do you think the leaders are going to face when they're coming down the stretch?

ERNIE ELS: Again, it depends on conditions. 16, 17 and 18 -- 18 is a tough hole. You've got to hit driver on 18. But 16 is an iron off the tee. It's a par-4, so you can just position it with an iron and then a short iron.

17 there's water right, but again, conditions today, it's not that tough. All the three holes coming in today are birdie holes. Maybe tomorrow conditions change.