Dec 18, 2006 2 min read

PORT ELIZABETH, South Africa (AP) – Ernie Els shot a 7-under 65 Sunday to beat Trevor Immelman by three strokes at the South African Open. Els had eight birdies and a bogey to finish the final round at 24-under 264. It was the South African’s first win of 2006.

“My wife needs a lot of credit. I’ve been a bear with a sore head this year,” Els said. “I’ve been working harder than ever and felt like I was going backwards. It’s been a tough year for me and my family. So this win is huge for me at this stage of my career. I don’t think it’s really even sunk in yet.”

Immelman (71) started the day with a three-stroke lead, but had bogeys on the sixth and eighth holes. The South African rebounded with three birdies on the last nine holes, but Els had five.

“My game plan was to draw level with him through nine and see what happens, but as it turned out I was two ahead through nine,” Els said.

Patrik Sjoland, who led at the tournament’s halfway mark, shot a 67 to finish third at 268, and Darren Fichardt (68) was fourth at 272. Retief Goosen (70) earned a share of fifth place, and Lee Westwood (70) was tied for eighth.

Els said he needed motivation to get back to his best.

“I feel I’ve still got a lot to offer the game and a lot of goals to achieve,” Els said. “The way I played in this final round will give me a lot of confidence in the majors next year, so hopefully this is the little step I needed.”