By Rory Carroll
AUGUSTA, Georgia, April 12 (Reuters) – Former champion Sergio Garcia said he was “not super proud” of his behaviour during Sunday’s final round of the Masters after smashing his driver on the second hole and having to play the rest of the round without it.
The Spaniard, who won the Green Jacket in 2017, began the day 16 shots behind the leaders and was already one over par for his round when his tee shot at the par-five second flew into the right fairway bunker.
Garcia repeatedly struck the turf with his driver before snapping the club when he hit a cooler beside the tee.
Under the rules, Garcia was unable to replace the club because it had been damaged in anger, leaving him without a driver for the remaining 16 holes.
“Through the year,” Garcia said when asked if the frustration had been building. “Yeah. Just obviously not super proud of it, but sometimes it happens.”
Garcia was later seen carrying playing partner Jon Rahm’s bag down the fairway in a bizarre scene.
Garcia declined to say what Masters officials told him when they spoke to him at the fourth hole.
“I’m not going to tell you,” he said.
Despite the incident, Garcia made par at the second but struggled over the rest of the round and finished eight-over par. Asked how much more difficult it was to play without a driver, Garcia was blunt.
“It makes it very easy. I just have to hit 3-wood all the time. I didn’t have to choose another club.”
Garcia, whose results at Augusta National have dipped since his victory nearly a decade ago, gave short answers when asked to explain his record at the year’s first major.
“Bad golf,” he said.
Pressed on whether there was a broader reason, Garcia added: “Bad shots.”
“Well, if you don’t hit good shots, you’re not going to score well here. It’s very simple.”
(Reporting by Rory Carroll, editing by Pritha Sarkar)
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