MARANA, Ariz. — A kinder, more gentle Sergio Garcia showed up at the Gallery Golf Club last weekend, resisting the urge to take a swipe at Rory McIlroy or anyone else on the PGA Tour.
“Everybody has an opinion,” Garcia said on his way to another top 10 finish on the LIV Tour. “Obviously everyone is going to talk. At the end of the day, we’re very happy where we are. We love the product. You just have to see what’s going on out here. So just go and ask them.”
This is the man who famously was caught on a TV camera saying he “can’t wait to leave this tour” at last year’s Wells Fargo Championship when a ruling didn’t go the way he wanted. He also said his one-time bestie, McIlroy, lacked maturity when McIlroy removed Garcia’s number from his phone after receiving an angry text. Despite all that, he did not take the bait.
Sergio, who joined LIV Golf last summer, even complimented the Tour after recent changes led to designated no-cut events with limited fields and increased purses.
Sound familiar?
“I’m happy about what’s happening on the PGA Tour because I have a lot of friends there and they deserve to get everything that they’re getting,” he said. “And I’m happy for them.”
This does not mean friendships will be repaired, even those with a man (McIlroy) who was the best man at his wedding. But Garcia certainly now appears to be taking the high road.
Perhaps he’s softening? Or maybe Garcia is just tired of the bickering and rhetoric from the two commissioners on down to the players on both tours?
Eugenio Chacarra of Fireballs GC and Captain Sergio Garcia of Fireballs GC wait on the 18th hole during the final round of the LIV Golf Tucson at the Gallery Golf Club on Sunday, Mar. 19, 2023, in Tucson, Arizona. (Photo by Montana Pritchard/LIV Golf)
Or maybe it’s just that he is playing better.
Garcia recorded his fifth top-10 finish in seven LIV events Sunday with a T6 at LIV Tucson. He was 7-under 206 for the 54-hole event at Gallery Golf Club, closing with a 73 Sunday.
Garcia’s top 10s equals the number he had in his last 42 PGA Tour events.
But it could have ended so much better. Garcia entered Sunday alone in second place, two shots off the lead. But three bogeys on his front nine had him teetering in the top 10. He secured his spot with a birdie on 16.
More satisfying was captain Garcia celebrating on the 18th green with Fireballs teammates after winning the team championship. Carlos Ortiz led the four-man…
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