Jakarta: A return to Asia has brought out the best from Ernie Els after he trailed Australia’s Scott Hend and Korea’s Hwang Inn-choon by two shots in the first round of the CIMB Niaga Indonesian Masters on Thursday.

The South African, nicknamed Big Easy, shot a four-under-par 68 with the long putter highlighted by five birdies and one ‘silly’ bogey, to end the day tied for fourth at the US$750,000 at the Royale Jakarta Golf Club.

Els rode on the hot momentum set by his flight mates Hend and Austria’s Bernd Wiesberger, who returned with 66 and 67 respectively at the event which is staged on the Asian Tour for the third year.

“I got to be satisfied with that. Obviously you would like to say it could have been better but I played nicely. I made a silly mistake on the third hole which was a short par four. I played with a nice group of guys who played good as well.

“I guess we all fed off each other. Scott Hend really started it off when he birdied three in a roll early in the round. Hopefully I can get it going tomorrow as well,” said Els.

The world number 24 has not enjoyed the best results since winning the 2012 Open Championship but he is starting to turn the corner after finishing tied 14th at the Chiangmai Golf Classic on the Asian Tour in March.

Following his Chiangmai stint, Els finished tied 13th at the Masters Tournament and took a share of 15th place on the PGA Tour on Sunday.

“I’m starting to feel more comfortable with my game. The last time I played in Chiangmai, I wasn’t too comfortable with my game. I played okay at the Masters Tournament and had a nice week at New Orleans.

“I feel that things are starting to come around so I got to thank the Asian Tour for getting my game back in shape. I like playing out here in Asia and the golf courses are nice. I need to get more rounds under my belt and I feel that I’m starting to get better,” said Els, who has won over 60 titles worldwide.