Another Easy Win for Els

Ernie Els is off to a fine start this year, even by his own demanding standards -- four titles in five tournaments, with a second-place finish in the other.

The South African’s latest victory came in a landslide Sunday when he closed with a six-under-par 66 to win the Johnnie Walker Classic by 10 strokes, setting a PGA European Tour record by finishing 29 under par.

“The way I’m playing now is some of the best golf I’ve ever played,” said Els, a two-time winner of the U.S. Open. “The whole package is pretty good at the moment.”

His four-round total of 259 on the Lake Karrinyup course in Perth, Australia, broke the tour’s 72-hole record for relation to par, surpassing Jerry Anderson’s 27 under in the 1984 European Masters.

Australians Stephen Leaney and Andre Stoltz matched Els’ closing 66 to tie for second at 19 under.

Els has made his surging start this season while Tiger Woods was sidelined following an operation on his left knee.

“It’s not me against Tiger and Tiger against me,” Els said. “I think it is us on a golf course and us trying to win golf tournaments. I’m just going to do what I am doing and play better golf.

“I have said it week in and week out -- I want to feel competitive and win tournaments -- so far I have been doing that.”

The Johnnie Walker also was sanctioned by the Australasian and Asian tours, and Els broke the Asian record of 26-under 262 set by India’s Jeev Milkha Singh at the 1996 Phillip Morris Asian Cup.

Els shot 64-65-64 the first three rounds to take a nine-stroke lead at 23 under heading into Sunday.

“This week everything went right,” he said. “I had a great time. The greens are soft, the wind stayed away all week and I could just go out there and attack the golf course.”

Retief Goosen, the 2002 winner, shot a 68 to finish 12 strokes behind at 17 under along with England’s Justin Rose (65), Australia’s Robert Allenby (66), New Zealand’s David Smail (68) and France’s Jean-Francois Remesy (69).

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Vicente Fernandez shot a four-under 68 in strong wind and won the ACE Group Classic at Naples, Fla., by three strokes, his first victory on the Champions Tour since 1999.

The 56-year-old Argentine sank a 61-foot putt to finish the three rounds in 14-under 202. He didn’t make a bogey for the final 53 holes of the tournament.

“It was one of the best rounds I’ve played under these circumstances from tee to green in these weather conditions,” said Fernandez, who earned the winner’s purse of $240,000.

Tour rookie Des Smith (66) and Tom Watson (69) shared second place in the $1.6-million tournament. Watson, the 2002 runner-up, hasn’t won professionally in 84 tries in Florida.

Jack Nicklaus completed his first full-field Champions Tour event since last April, shooting a 72 for a three-over total to tie for 58th. Nicklaus, who tied for 11th at the MasterCard Championship two weeks ago, will play in this week’s Verizon Classic in Tampa.

“I just didn’t play very well,” Nicklaus, 63, said. “A few shots were decent, but for the most part I just wasn’t very sharp.”

Club professional Jay Overton, a qualifier, bogeyed the last hole to tie for fourth with Gil Morgan and Tom Purtzer.

Fernandez’s thoughts were with Brian Deasy, his caddie since 1997. Deasy has been undergoing chemotherapy for a tumor near his spine and left Fernandez a voice mail Saturday night.

“He was inside me, in my thoughts,” Fernandez said. “That just shows you that somebody upstairs always remembers when you behave properly.”

Fernandez had birdies on Nos. 6, 10, 17 and 18. His birdie on No. 6 gave him the lead and he extended it with a three-footer on No. 10.

He missed only one green and he was barely off that one. He hit two par-fives in two.