HOYLAKE, England — Ernie Els got off to an abysmal start after accidentally bloodying a spectator with his opening tee shot on the first hole Thursday.
A few moments after striking a man he described as “in his 60s,’’ Els three-putted from one foot on the first green for triple bogey. He was 8-over par through seven holes and finished with a 79.
Afterward, Els explained he was so upset after his opening tee shot hit the spectator in the face it distracted him.
“It was like a bullet coming at him, so he must have been in total shock,’’ Els said. “He didn’t look very good. I did speak to him, and he wasn’t feeling too good getting hit. There was blood everywhere. I felt pretty bad about it, because I was trying to hit it left, which I did, and obviously I probably should have started to move the people left on the left side, but I didn’t do that.’’
Els said he could not stop thinking about the injured patron.
“There was blood all over and I was quite rattled,’’ he said. “I started missing short putts. It was a nightmare. I just hope the gentleman feels better, because he looked really bad when I left him there. I did speak to him, and he wasn’t feeling too good getting hit.’’
Els later posted on Twitter that he reached out to the fan to make sure he was okay, and also  gave him two tickets to the tournament for the rest of the weekend.