Sergio Garcia walked into his Masters news conference Thursday, raised his arms in the air and screamed to the masses, “I was born to win this tournament!”
OK. Maybe not. But can he at least exude a little bit of confidence?
Garcia had just fired a 6-under 66 for a share of the first-round lead at the Masters. He was one of only two players in the field of 93 to shoot a bogey-free round and somewhat resembled golf’s next great thing (albeit a decade late). But then he opened his mouth, and we were reminded why this is the same mush head who a year ago at the Masters said, “I need to play for second or third place.”
Some remarks from your first-round co-leader:
- "Obviously it's not my most favorite place, but we'll try to enjoy it as much as we can we can. Sometimes things come out better than others. Today was one of those good days. Let's enjoy it while it lasts."
- On whether he regrets last year's comments: "Um, those were my words. At the end of the day we go through moments, tough moments, frustrating moments, and it was one of them. Maybe I didn't say it the right way. but what I felt was I shot myself out of the tournament, and I wasn't wrong there. But every time I tee off, I try to play as best as I can."
Garcia was just 19 years old when he finished second to Tiger Woods in the 1999 PGA Championship. Many projected him for greatness. He had strong finishes in the 2002 (eighth) and 2004 (fourth) Masters, as well as runner-ups in the U.S. (2008) and British opens (2007). But with only two Tour wins since 2005 and zero major victories to his credit, he largely is viewed as an underachiever.
Resiliency never has been in his vocabulary. Goofy, maybe. If this were basketball, Garcia wouldn’t get the ball in the final minute.
It’s one thing for an athlete to be defined by his resume — it’s another to define oneself before a career presumably is even half over. If Garcia were a cartoon character, he would be Eeyore.
Roll it back to last year. After shooting a flabby 77 in the third round at Augusta, Garcia told the Spanish-speaking media — eagerly translated for English-speaking vultures — “I’m not good enough. I don’t have the thing I need to have. In 13 years I’ve come to the conclusion that I need to play for second or third place.”
Just the Masters, he was asked? “In any major,” he replied.
At times after Thursday’s 66, Garcia tried to project himself in a positive light. He just didn’t seem terribly certain of it. A parade of psychiatrists would’ve walked out of the room, scratching their heads.
He said he “played excellent” over the first 10 holes (5 under), then struggled a bit. “What I’m going to try to take into my pillow tonight is the first 10 holes.”
He said his periodic lack-of-confidence issues are no different than what Woods or Rory McIlroy go through. “The beauty and the bad thing of this game is … it’s more mental than some other games.”
When asked about his comment about Augusta National not being his favorite place, he said: “I still welcome a chance to play the Masters. Sometimes I do feel like there is a thing about being too hyper about something.”
Nothing about him screams: momentum.
Or: I want this.
Or: I’ll take this.
He also left a hangover from his last tournament three weeks ago, the Arnold Palmer Invitational. He hit his 10th tee shot into a tree. He climbed the tree. (Insert: “Sergio is up a tree” joke.) He found the ball and hit it — one-handed and backward — off the branch and back into play.
Even with the double-bogey, it was impressive. But two holes later, at 5 over for the day and 3 over for the tournament, he withdrew. He claimed shoulder pain. There would’ve been no reason to doubt him, except that this was Sergio and he had been quoted that he was low on enthusiasm and, “I just want to go home.” So you decide.
On the course Thursday, we saw his upside. He hit 14 of 18 greens in regulation. He putted well and tied for the second-most birdies (six) in the round. He shot his first bogey-free round at Augusta since 2002.
“Today is one of the nice days,” he said. “Hopefully I will have three more of them.”
Go get ’em, tiger.
About the Author
