Ernie Els is a former World No.1 with 80 professional victories to his name, including four Major Championships, one Senior Major, two World Golf Championships and a record seven World Matchplay titles.

Away from the golf course, Ernie has transcended his sport by virtue of his groundbreaking charitable endeavours. Ernie and his wife Liezl founded The Els for Autism Foundation in 2009, which led to the opening of The Els Center of Excellence, a world-class site hosting leading-edge programs and services for individuals with autism. In addition, Ernie founded The Ernie Els Foundation in South Africa in 1999, delivering educational assistance and golfing opportunities to young individuals predominantly from families of limited resources. Listed among its former members are tournament winners Louis Oosthuizen, Christiaan Bezuidenhout and Thriston Lawrence.

Ernie’s increasingly diverse range of business interests successfully encompass golf course design and hospitality, an award winning wine portfolio created by Ernie Els Wines in South Africa, an innovative range of pet products, and a student-athlete recruitment program.

Ernie put up a strong defence of his title at the PGA Champions Tour’s season-opening Mitsubishi Electric Championship at Hualalai in Hawaii. Opening with a pair of 66s, Ernie closed on Saturday with a final round 67 to finish at 17-under par and tied-4th.

Ernie is next in action at the inaugural Stars Golf League, a one-of-a-kind event staged from March 25-28 at The Els Club Dubai, the acclaimed ‘desert links’ designed by Ernie himself. The event brings together 24 legendary golfers, six leading women professionals, and six global celebrity golfers in a team-format battle for glory played over four days.

“I’m excited to be playing in the Stars Golf League,” commented Ernie at the event’s official media launch in January. “We’ve got a special venue, a wonderful golf course, and it’s always a pleasure to go back to Dubai, a city that has meant such a lot to me throughout my career. It’s going to be a lot of fun and extremely competitive. I look forward to it very much.”

Meanwhile, away from the tournament scene, Ernie Els Design scooped a number of prestigious accolades at the recent World Golf Awards, which every year celebrate and reward excellence in golf tourism. The Els Club Vilamoura in Portugal (pictured right), Anahita Golf & Spa Resort Mauritius, Trump International Golf Club Lido in Indonesia, The Els Club Dubai, and The Els Club Desaru Coast’s Valley Course, all won gold in their respective categories.