Ernie Els leads by a stroke heading into final round of Hoag Classic golf tournament

Ernie Els is one of the most recognizable professional golfers in the world.

When it comes to the PGA Tour Champions events, however, Els is still just a rookie. He’s in his first year on tour after turning 50 last October.

“You have to be on your game, you know?” Els said. “That’s kind of what I’ve been preaching to my guys last year in the Presidents Cup, I said get on your game and play at an elite level. That’s what the guys do ... these guys can make a lot of birdies.”

The four-time major winner and World Golf Hall of Fame member only has to worry about himself at the Hoag Classic at Newport Beach Country Club. Going into the last day, Els is in a position to win for the first time on the senior circuit.

Els shot a seven-under-par 64 in cooler conditions Saturday and sits at 12-under-par through two rounds. That has him one shot up on first-round leader David Morland IV and Scott McCarron, who are each at 11-under.

The three leaders will be in the final group Sunday and tee off from hole No. 1 at 12:30 p.m.

Ken Tanigawa and Ken Duke are tied for fourth at 10-under. Newport Beach resident Fred Couples, a two-time event winner in 2010 and 2014, is at nine-under along with Robert Karlsson of Sweden and Chris DiMarco.

Els, playing in his third event of the year, did not have a perfect round Saturday. He bogeyed three par-fours — Nos. 5, 12 and 14. But he also had eight birdies, and he made an eagle on No. 15 for the second straight day, albeit after making a much shorter putt than on Friday.

“I hit a nice drive and a five-iron to about, what was it, 12 or 14 feet,” he said. “It was a really nice putt to go in because I bogeyed the previous hole. So it was really a nice momentum swinger and I made a good [birdie] on 17 and a good one on 18. A lot to play [Sunday], but I’m in nice position.”

Morland IV, who carded a 10-under 61 on Friday, was one-under on Saturday. That left him tied with McCarron, who finished the second round strong by birdieing three of the last four holes.

McCarron, last year’s Charles Schwab Cup winner and PGA Tour Champions Player of the Year, has never won the Hoag Classic. But he has finished in the top 10 each of his previous four times out. He tied for second in 2018 and tied for third last year.

“Just tried to stay patient all day,” said McCarron, who had five birdies and three bogeys on his scorecard. “It was very difficult, hole locations were tough and I hit a lot of good putts that just weren’t quite going in. Yet, today was a day I kind of had to stay patient a little bit and I did a good job of that.”

A run by Couples on the final day would certainly be to the delight of the hometown fans. He would be the first person to win the 25th annual tournament three times.

Couples, who had five birdies in his bogey-free round of 66 on Saturday, said he is excited to see Els do well at an event that’s a fan favorite. Couples won the event when he was a PGA Tour Champions rookie in 2010.

“When you get a guy like Ernie, he doesn’t want to play in front of 30 people,” Couples said. “It’s kind of not conducive for a guy who’s just coming off the PGA Tour and 5,000 people watch him every round. So when he plays here, he plays like he is, he’s going to get the galleries and enjoy it. In my opinion, that’s what we need for people to come out and play our tour. It’s fun.”

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