Wednesday, 7th March 2007 at 8:11 am

Ernie ditches Titleist

To be honest, it just looked odd: the Big Easy striding round Blue Canyon Country Club during the Johnnie Walker Classic weilding Callaway weaponry, rather than the Titleist gear we’re used to seeing him play with. And it’ll probably look a touch disconcerting for a while yet; the sooner he wins, the sooner we’ll forget a seismic change in equipment.

To swing from one major supplier to another overnight - Callaway bought out the remainder of the Titleist contract, and new clubs went straight into Els’s bag for the Johnnie Walker - is no small move. Rumours of money (supposedly a $10-million deal) have swirled about, as have comparisons with Phil Mickelson’s similar high-profile switch to Callaway a few years ago; but why has Els really moved?

The answer can only be that Els believes Callaway offers him a better product, and one that will deliver on an ambition that still burns strong, despite question marks over Ernie’s desire surfacing in the last year. He doesn’t need the money, particularly if it compromises his game, and word from the Els camp is that the world number six is determined to haul himself back up the rankings, and add another Major or two to the current haul of three.

If Callaway can get him there, it’ll have proved a shrewd move - and the Johnnie Walker Classic suggested that Callaway are definitely smiling while Titleist try and keep a stiff upper lip. 20-year-old South African Anton Haig won the Johnnie Walker, and appeared in a Titleist cap for his interview post-victory - and promptly thanked Callaway for the new driver they’d supplied him with this week. A sign, perhaps? Els will certainly hope so.