📍Kempton Park, Gauteng, South Africa
1969 – 1989“Ernie Els was born in Johannesburg in October 1969 and grew up in Kempton Park, a suburb on the East Rand near what is now O.R. Tambo airport, in a sporty Afrikaans family. His father, Neels, ran a trucking business and was a keen golfer, and his mother, Hettie, kept the home. With his older brother, Dirk, Ernie grew up playing every sport going: rugby, cricket, tennis and golf. At four he was carrying his father's clubs around the Kempton Park course near their home, and at eight he began playing himself. During school holidays, Neels would drop his two golf-mad sons at Kempton Park or Germiston golf club early in the morning, and the boys would play round after round, once getting round eighteen holes four times in a day, carrying their own bags. He was also a gifted tennis player, winning the Eastern Transvaal junior title at thirteen, and his mother stopped him playing rugby after an injury. By fourteen he was playing off scratch, and he decided to focus on golf. In 1984 he won the Junior World Golf Championship in San Diego, beating a young Phil Mickelson into second place. After national service, he turned professional in 1989. Nicknamed the Big Easy for his relaxed manner and fluid swing, he won four major championships, including two US Opens and two Open Championships. He has founded a centre for children with autism, and he remains proud of the Kempton Park fairways where he learned the game.”
🗺️ Approximate location today
📍 Street view today