The South African golfing legend who is now a business mogul with his own wine estate, golf course design firm, and commercial investments

Business • 6 November 2026 • Shaun Jacobs

South African golfer Ernie Els has successfully built a business empire off the golf course, with interests ranging from course design to a wine farm to commercial investments.

Els’ success on the course is just as impressive, having 80 professional victories, including four Major Championships and a record seven World Matchplay titles.

His success on the course and off it has enabled Els to donate generously to The Els for Autism Foundation and to expand access to golf in South Africa through the Ernie Els Foundation.

Born Theodore Ernest Els, the man who would become “The Big Easy” was raised on the East Rand in a suburb of Germiston called Lambton.

Els was born a gifted sportsman, playing rugby, cricket, and tennis at reasonably high levels before golf became dominant. His tennis career peaked with his victory at the Eastern Transvaal Junior Championships.

However, his father, Neels, was always teaching Els about golf at the local Germiston Golf Course during his spare time away from work as a trucking executive.

A young Ernie was soon playing better golf than his father and older brother Dirk, reaching a scratch handicap at the age of 14.

After reaching this milestone, Els switched to focusing solely on golf, and his family poured resources into giving him the best opportunity to succeed.

In 1984, Els had his first taste of global victory when he won the Junior World Golf Championship, beating a young Phil Mickelson to the title.

A few years later, Els won the South African Amateur at the age of 17. The offers from American universities came flooding in, but Els chose to fulfil his mandatory military service in South Africa in 1988.

Returning from the army, Els turned professional in 1989 and began playing on the Southern Africa Tour, picking up several victories before winning the Dunlop Phoenix in Japan.

At 25 years olf, Els won his first Major Championship at the US Open after beating Colin Montgomerie and Loren Roberts in an 18-hole playoff.

This Major victory was coupled with three consecutive World Match Play Championships from 1994 to 1996. Els was the first-ever to perform such a feat.

Els followed this up with another US Open victory in 1997, making him the first foreign player since 1910 to win the US Open twice.

2002 saw Els bring his third Major home, with the Open Championship Claret Jug coming home to South Africa. In the same year, he won his fourth World Match Play title and third Nedbank Challenge.

This brought him into the Big Five with Tiger Woods, Vijay Singh, Retief Goosen, and Phil Mickelson. These five players would dominate gold for the next three years.

However, Els suffered a Major drought, not winning any of golf’s biggest tournaments until the 2012 Open Championship.

Els has not officially retired, having stepped away from the main PGA Tour after turning 50. He still plays on the PGA Tour Champions and in select international and senior events.

Wine farms and big business

While he was touring the world and dominating golf as part of the Big Five, Els was simultaneously building an impressive business empire.

Leveraging his global profile, Els created The Ernie Els Group, where he is an active manager in his various ventures.

The main business of the group is Ernie Els Design, which is a full-service architectural firm that has flagship venues around the world.

Some of the more famous clubs include Albany in the Bahamas, The Els Club in Dubai, Zimbali Lakes, and the Wentworth Club’s West Course. These courses hold major events annually.

Els has recently expanded the design business to include the construction of practice facilities and instruction centres in Vietnam and Malaysia.

The second major business under the group is Ernie Els Wines, which began in 1999 with an estate on the Helderberg Mountain in Stellenbosch.

Els partnered with renowned winemaker Louis Strydom to craft high-quality wines, focusing on Cabernet Sauvignon and Bordeaux-style blends.

The golfer has invested heavily in the estate to make it more modern, including a new tasting room, a restaurant, and a dedicated trophy room with Els’ major silverware.

Els’ success with the wine business led to him creating a branded dining and bar concept as part of Big Easy Concepts.

This business has a collection of casual restaurants that sell Els’ wines and South African-based food in Durban, Stellenbosch, Miami, and Dubai.

Beyond these businesses, Els has invested in companies specialising in pet care, sports technology and recruitment, as well as apparel brands such as Srixon and Cleveland Golf.

Ernie Els Foundation

Els has also used his on-course success to fund philanthropic efforts that are close to him, particularly autism advocacy and improving access to golf.

His autism philanthropy began in 2008 when the family revealed their son, Ben, had been diagnosed with autism. This prompted the creation of the Els for Autism Foundation.

The foundation focuses on providing evidence-based pathways for individuals with autism across their lifespan.

Els’ primary project with this foundation has been the development of the Els Centre of Excellence in Florida.

This 26-acre campus is purpose-built as a model for autism care, education and research. It includes educational facilities, clinical therapy suites, and a dedicated adult services pavilion.

Els also ensured the centre has a three-hole par-3 golf facility engineered for therapeutic instruction and recreation.

The main focus of the facility is to improve diagnostic and screening initiatives to enable early intervention, with occupational therapy beginning for children as young as 12 months old.

It also breaks the common pattern of programmes phasing out after individuals turn 21 by developing independent living training and social enterprise work programmes.

Another cause close to Els’ heart is expanding access to golf in South Africa and other parts of the world.

This is done through The Ernie Els Foundation, which was founded in 1999 to empower disadvantaged young South Africans through golf.

The foundation has developed a curriculum that is centred on golf, education, and life skills to give participants the best shot at improving their long-term outcomes.

It does not just hand out equipment, but covers private schooling, university tuition, boarding, travel expenses, and provides personal mentorship.

The foundation has created some of South Africa’s best golf players, including Louis Oosthuizen, Branden Grace and Christiaan Bezuidenhout.