Amides derived from pyrrolidine and methyl (S)-lactate, methyl (S)-2-hydroxy-3- phenylpropanoate, or methyl (S)-2-hydroxy-3-methylbutanoate, after O-benzylation and O- silylation have been treated with EtLi or EtMgCl under suitable conditions, to give excellent overall yields of enantiopure ethyl ketones. The chelating ability of α-OBn amides (and even of α-O-TBS amides, which has been demonstrated by NMR to be better than that of N- ...