The first time I saw it Sergio Garcia playing golf was in 1999, in Atlanta, just before the Masterswhen he played in the Georgia Cup, an annual two-player amateur match in which the reigning British amateur champion plays his American counterpart.
that year, The child – at 19, the boy already had a nickname and a presence – played Hank Kuehnea longtime Texan from a famous golfing family. Garcia’s parents were on the scene, heading into the hills at the sprawling Golf Club of Georgia. Garcia’s father, Victor, a club teacher and Sergio’s teacher, was as reserved as his son was boyish and splashy. Sergio has an athletic and rhythmic swing that pays tribute to the joys of lag. Garcia won well. In victory he was graceful, charming, continental. Golf seemed to come easily to him. Everyone did, really.
Not even two weeks later, Garcia was the underdog at the Masters, a tournament that celebrates future promise, with manners and personality. (Kuehne missed the cut that year and never played in another Masters—a golf game is a fragile thing. It’s a Fabergé egg.) In Butler’s Cabinon the Sunday night of the 99 tournament, Garcia sat next to the new winner, José María Olazábal, a professional golfer with a royal bearing. Olazábal was the second Spaniard to win in Augusta. That green coat was his second, after foot problems that almost ended his career. Severiano Ballesteros, the European Arnold Palmer, was the first Spaniard to win at Augusta. Seve and Chema and eventually El Niño – in 2017, Garcia became the third Spaniard to win at Augusta.. Since then, another Spanish golfer, Jon Rahmhe won the tournament. A beautiful frame.
Ballesteros entered the World Golf Hall of Fame in their first year of eligibility. Olazábal missed his first two times, but the third time was the charm. It was his character that carried the day. Rahm, 31, is already a winner of the US Open and Masters. He hasn’t added another major since he joined – and left recently – LIV Golf but is probably on a long road to Pinehurst, the new home of the hall (as his first home). For active players, the age requirement is 45. But what about Garcia, who is 46: Is he bound for Pinehurst? On paper (or for AI), you should say yes. The record is here. How the HOF voters judge his character, his place in the game, will make or break his chances. For now, it’s in a holding pattern.
Garcia was born in 1980 and has a major title. He was not among the finalists for the Hall of Fame for the Class of 27, announced a couple of months ago. In other words, he didn’t make it out of the nominating committee. Justin Rose was born in 1980 and has a major. Adam Scottthe same and the same. Both were among the finalists. They had something that Garcia didn’t have. Whatever it is, it makes all the difference. Here’s a stab: the ways. Garcia’s long-standing petulance made it hard to remember his youthful exuberance.
Garcia is not the first prodigy who did not fulfill all his amateur promise. Golf has become more difficult for him as a professional, in short putting the stretch more especially. It’s true that even when Tiger was at the height of his powers, no one in professional golf hit more quality iron shots than Garcia. He drove it long and into the game. But the closure is closed, in sales and in golf tournaments. He has a major title. He had a wonderful career. But a major is a major. He doesn’t have two, like Collin Morikawa has. Nor three, as Jordan Spieth has. Not four (Scottie Scheffler), not five (Brooks Koepka), not six (Rory McIlroy). Maybe it’s frustrating. To be less kind about it: It must be frustrating. Enter petulance.
Let’s not forget all that he did. Garcia has won dozens of times, all over the world. He won a Players title. It is one of the greatest Ryder Cuppers ever. For the record, it is miles north of Fred Couples, who is in the Hall of Fame.
But Garcia spat in a cup during the game (Doral 2007). He has been graceless in defeat more than a few times. He has a TikTok highlight reel of antics going on. This year – Sunday at the Masters, second tee, playing with Jon Rahm – had one a hiss slipped over a pushed drive (and who knows what else) that a tournament official, a member in a green coat, came out to give a code of conduct warning about his behavior. This, to a man who is an honorary member of the club.
I don’t remember anything like that happening in any major event, in the men’s pro game, in women’s pro golf, in amateur golf. Modes are baked into the soul of the game. If you are good enough and disciplined enough to break 70 on a hard course, you must have mastered the etiquette of the game.
This does not mean being an automaton. Not at all. It means respecting the playing partners, the fans, the officials, your host, your environment, the rule.
Last week, in a statement about his future, Garcia said: “This season, I’m working really hard on my game and putting a big focus on a strong mentality and my mental health.” It’s his statement, he can say what he wants, of course. He might have suggested something more like this: “For years, I’ve been acting like a spoiled brat. I’m going to do my best to change that.”
Garcia’s LIV Golf career is evidently over, as he announced that he will play on the DP World Tour next year and that he is “keeping my options open for a return to the PGA Tour.” What do you mean, keep your options open? It has no immediate path back, not that I can see. He left in a bad mood, and is suspended from the PGA Tour for now to go to LIV and sign for all those guaranteed millions in the first place. Going to LIV came at a cost for the tours that did it. The arrogance is amazing.
In the statement, Garcia said he left Augusta last year “disappointed in myself and my actions, and I’m ready to show what I’ve learned and where I’m at mentally.” It is certainly admirable. Even more admirable would have been this: I acted like a kid, which is a little ridiculous. I am 46 years old! But I can change. I hope I can.
He concludes by saying that in golf “everything is earned and nothing is given. Let’s get to work.” Of course he did the work, but Sergio Garcia was given great gifts the day he was born: a golf teacher for a father; superior hand-eye coordination from DNA; unlimited access to the game. To whom much is given, &c. In 1999, we expected more. More significantly, Garcia definitely expected more of himself. The models were there.
It’s not too late. It never is. A legacy hangs in the balance here. We will see.
Michael Bamberger welcomes your comments at Michael.Bamberger@Golf.com.
