Els still trying to qualify after honorary Masters invite

The four-time major clarified his status for the 2018 Masters via Twitter.

Late last week, multiple reports said Els had received a special invitation to compete in next year's tournament and Els acknowledged the invitation in a tweet.

A five-year qualifying spot in the Masters from his 2012 British Open triumph ended this year for the 48-year-old South African.

Els received an honorary invitation to appear at Augusta National during Masters week in 2018 rather than being granted an automatic spot in the field for the year's first major championship.

Honorary invitees are given such perks as clubhouse access and tournament badges and in past years had been permitted into the Par-3 Contest and onto the course for practice rounds.