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CNN Sunday Morning

Ernie Els Leads Field at British Open

Aired July 21, 2002 - 11:30   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: In sports, it's the final round of the British Open, but in this Grand Slam you won't be finding Tiger Woods clawing his way to the top. Patrick Snell with CNN Sports is live from Muirfield course in Galen (ph), Scotland.

PATRICK SNELL, CNN SPORTS: Fredricka, many thanks. Yes, we're getting near to what should be a thrilling climax here at Muirfield, and word on the leader board in just a minute.

But Tiger Woods' British Open has come to an end. He was much improved today. He shot a 65, 6 under par, but he ended it on level par, and sadly for the world's number one, it wasn't good enough. And that performance yesterday, when he shot an 81, ended his hopes of a third consecutive major this year.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TIGER WOODS, GOLFER: Two is a great year. I think sometimes the media and then everybody tends to lose perspective on how difficult it is to win a major championship, and any time you can win one major in a year, it's going to be a successful year.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SNELL: Tiger Woods, I'm sure, will be back. He'll now be fully focused on trying to make amends in the forthcoming USPGA up ahead in August.

Well, as I say, the tournament is getting near its climax, and although the golfers are still out on the course, the contenders, that is, and it's currently (UNINTELLIGIBLE) because Ernie Els, he's leading the field through 10 holes. He was 6 under par, but it's very, very tight, although there's a whole cluster of players on 5 under, including Gary Evans (ph) from England, Steve Elkington (ph) and the Dane Soren Hansen (ph), all on 5 under par. These next couple of hours are going to be very, very tense indeed, Fredricka.

WHITFIELD: All right. Tiger's out, but still a fascinating tournament to watch today out there. And how are the fans seemingly responding to the new leaders, at least in this British Open?

SNELL: Well, Ernie Els in particular is such a big name in his own right. He's a two-time major winner. He's won the U.S. Open on two occasions in the '90s, and he has a huge, as I say, following himself. There are thousands of people out on this course.

Pretty rarely we have very good weather. It's nice afternoon sunshine, in stark contrast to the atrocious conditions yesterday, and there are thousands of people out on this coastal links course in Scotland, getting very, very excited and very, very nervous -- each and every one of them has his goal, for hoping his golf can triumph, and win this very prestigious 131st British Open title, Fredricka.

WHITFIELD: All right. It's been a good run for Ernie Els. Thanks very much, Patrick Snell, appreciate it.

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