Els, others feel Carnoustie's bite

CARNOUSTIE, Scotland -- With apologies to all weekend hackers, there are no mulligans in golf.

Too bad, Ernie Els.

He should have been right in the thick of things at the British Open after making six birdies Saturday. Instead, he could only grumble about what might have been, knowing he'll go to the final round needing to overcome a disheartening six-shot deficit to Sergio Garcia.

"I had a lot fun," Els said, "if not for one bad tee shot."

One bad swing. That's all it took for Carnoustie to show its bite on a day when plenty of players had their way with the hallowed links. Els was among them, joining 26 others in breaking par with a 3-under 68.

Of course, the South African could easily envision signing for a 64-65 at worst -- if only he had been allowed a do-over at the sixth hole, a privilege held dear by those who play the game for fun. That would have put him within striking distance of Garcia, close enough to put some real heat on an emotional young player still seeking his first major.

"You can play really well," Els mused, "and you can have a bad swing here and there and make a big number."

This isn't baseball, where a batter can miss with his first two swings and still hit a grand slam. Every golf swing goes on the card, and the number goes even higher when you pull your tee shot out of bounds, as Els did at No. 6.

Ernie Els will be seeing the number eight in his sleep on Saturday night. (Getty Images)

He wound up with a devastating triple bogey on the 578-yard, par-5 hole, known as "Hogan's Alley" and rated the next-to-easiest hole on the course this week.

Most players, Els included, view Hogan's Alley as a convenient place to shave a stroke off the score, especially when it's playing downwind as it was in the third round. A par is acceptable. Make bogey and count on walking away disappointed.

Well, imagine how Els must have felt putting down 8 -- a snowman in golf parlance -- on his card. Of the 70 players who passed through Saturday, 27 made birdie, 29 took par and eight more settled for bogeys. Only Els and little-known Frenchman Gregory Bourdy scored worse than double bogey.

"I'll take 6 right now," Els said, as if pleading for a second chance. "But 8? It's hard to come back from there."

Actually, Els made quite a comeback. He birdied five of the last 11 holes, leaving him with a 3-under 210 that at least provides a glimmer of hope. But he can't bear the prospect of sitting there Sunday night, watching Garcia take custody of the Claret Jug after holding off Els by two or three shots.