Ernie Els calls two-shot penalty on himself after chipping in for eagle

Ernie Els has again shown why he is one of the most well-liked, honest golfers in the history of the game after calling a penalty on himself during the first round of the BMW PGA Championship.

After finding his ball plugged beside a bunker at the par-5 12th hole at Wentworth Golf Club, Ernie Els asked playing partners if he could mark and check to make sure it was his ball. After doing so, he replaced the ball the way he found it.

But after playing his next shot which dropped in for eagle, he didn’t feel right about it and called a two-shot penalty on himself for not playing the ball from the correct place.

“I pulled it a bit left and hit it into the bank of the bunker,” Els said after the round. “I thought it was plugged, so I asked my guys if I could check it and they said yeah. I put it back and I hit my chip shot, and I just felt uncomfortable by the way the ball came out.”

“The ball came out way too good. So I felt I didn’t quite probably put it exactly where I should have. JP and the guys explained to me that under the rules, you try and put it back the way you think it should be, but I still felt uncomfortable with it, so we took a two-shot penalty.”

“It’s one of those things. The game of golf is what it is,” Els continued. “I know deep down the ball wasn’t quite where it should be, and you know, I wouldn’t be able to live with myself. So be it. It’s a five, and we move on.”

Integrity. Intact.

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