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Sergio Garcia DQd for “serious misconduct” after damaging greens at Saudi International

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Sergio Garcia has been disqualified from the Saudi International after violating rule 1.2a, the European Tour said in a statement.

The rule allows for player disqualification in instances of serious misconduct.

According to Martin Dempster of the Scotsman, players behind Garcia alerted rules officials to the damage during the third round, which resulted in a meeting with chief executive Keith Pelley following the conclusion of the Spaniard’s round.

Garcia, who opened the competition at Royal Greens G&CC with rounds of 69, 70, said in the statement

“I respect the decision of my disqualification. In frustration, I damaged a couple of greens, for which I apologise for, and I have informed my fellow players it will never happen again.”

Garcia had already taken his frustrations out on a bunker during the tournament’s second round and indicated the course’s paspalum greens weren’t to his liking earlier in the week.

 

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44 Comments

44 Comments

  1. DaveJ

    Feb 4, 2019 at 9:55 pm

    As someone who suffers from fits of rage myself, I can tell you that it isn’t something you can just stop doing. You can work to control it and mask it, but at some point your anger will get the better of you. You are immediately embarrassed and regretful but in the moment it can be impossible to get away from it. That being said, it was right to DQ him and he should probably be fined/suspended as well because the behavior can’t be condoned.

  2. Tom

    Feb 4, 2019 at 6:47 pm

    Tiger swore and threw clubs, was never suspended or penalized now was he?

    • JP

      Feb 6, 2019 at 10:18 pm

      And that has what to do with Sergio damaging greens? Completely different offenses.

  3. Cm

    Feb 4, 2019 at 1:45 pm

    I can’t decide till I see the pictures of the greens. Still think Rahm is far worse slamming clubs regularly.

  4. joro

    Feb 4, 2019 at 12:38 pm

    La la la, same old thing. He has a fit, reacts with a negative and then apologizes “I weel never do eet again, that is until next time. Face it, Sergio is nothing but a spoiled brat who thinks the World is against him and says so. Of course he does nothing to change that with his according to the pitiful “talking Heads” announcers who refer to his actions as the Fiery Spaniard. Fiery my fat ass, he is a spoiled little brat.

    Suspend him for a few tournaments and see how bit the fire is after that.

  5. Dr Remo

    Feb 4, 2019 at 12:22 pm

    Garcia deserves it.
    Wish the same conduct standards applied to tennis…..e.g. Serena Williams’ outbursts and physically threatening line judges are a disgrace and should result in suspension.

  6. Darryl

    Feb 4, 2019 at 7:19 am

    Whilst he’s no worse for losing his temper than any other of a dozen reasonably big name players out there, it’s what he does when he loses his temper that baffles. Petulance is one thing when you break your driver or putter over your knee, it’s another thing completely when you damage the playing surfaces, also the fact he did it on multiple greens. Ok, the red mist came down and he did something stupid in the first instance, he realises his mistake, apologises profusely, offers to WD and/or waive appearance fee, case closed. But to do it over and over again? Referee should have hauled him up for it at the very least. Disappointed the European tour haven’t announced at least a token ban. Surely they have to take into account the fact that he has very nearly injured spectators in the past. Apologists can no longer even say “it’s just frustration from never having won a major”, which always used to be the line. Monty was a properly bad tempered SOB when he played poorly and famously never won a proper major (face the facts, Champions tour), but I don’t remember him every carving a green up or throwing a club in a dangerous fashion, or fouling the hole. I’ve been a Sergio fan a long time and really enjoyed watching him break his major duck at Augusta in 2017, but he’s becoming impossible to justify supporting.

  7. GolfConsumer

    Feb 4, 2019 at 1:13 am

    Callaway should drop his immature a__.

    Thats it, I’m not buying another piece of Callaway golf equipment until they drop him!

  8. jgpl001

    Feb 3, 2019 at 3:01 pm

    Anger, frustration, well we have all experienced that

    Kick your bag, slam a club, swear, we have all done that

    Damaging the golf course – WAY OUT OF ORDER, NOT ACCEPTABLE

    Ban the brat

  9. Chris

    Feb 3, 2019 at 1:51 pm

    Y’all are hating because you have immunity online. Be quiet, everyone gets mad. Go wash your super cavity back irons that you still shank.

    • JP

      Feb 4, 2019 at 12:47 am

      And the fact that many of us play SGI irons and aren’t good golfers justifies Sergio in some way? Please explain.

    • john

      Feb 5, 2019 at 2:17 pm

      Very mature response. Not.

      There’s getting mad and there’s getting mad. Sergio damaged five green – something I assume you’d be unhappy at if it was a member of your club doing it. Garcia has a hugely privileged life and the least he can do is act like the role model he is to many young golfers. Sergio seems like a decent enough guy, if a little emotional. I’m sure he’ll be hugely embarrassed by how he acted and would accept any criticism that comes his way.

  10. Dave C.

    Feb 3, 2019 at 6:37 am

    Many millions of dollars usually make most people jerks.

    Golf pros, football players, capitalists, old money, new money.

    • Chip2Win

      Feb 3, 2019 at 8:38 am

      I’m pretty sure there are lots of poor people who are jerks too.

  11. Central Oregon Golf

    Feb 2, 2019 at 11:34 pm

    I hope he never wins again. Should have kicked him off the course immediately instead of after round. Agree on more severe penalty in the way of suspension, fine, and maintenance fee to fix & improve course. Maybe the tours should sponsor anger management as well?!

    • Safe Hans

      Feb 12, 2019 at 8:03 am

      Totally agree, he should be serving a ban for what he did – a serious lack of respect to the course and our game.

  12. Johnny Rebel

    Feb 2, 2019 at 9:50 pm

    Sergio acts like a n igger when he doesn’t get his way.

  13. AC in TX

    Feb 2, 2019 at 9:26 pm

    I damage greens all the time – it’s called hitting it fat … very fat.

    • JP

      Feb 3, 2019 at 10:23 am

      Either you don’t know the difference between greens and fairways, or you really have no business putting.

  14. Jose Pinatas

    Feb 2, 2019 at 5:15 pm

    Can someone post a video of this? I love Sergio meltdowns, super entertaining..

    • JP

      Feb 2, 2019 at 9:34 pm

      Yeah, I’d like to see what kind of damage he caused with a putter and how he tried to disguise it as normal play. What a JackA$$

  15. Oldplayer

    Feb 2, 2019 at 4:26 pm

    This behavior shows the character of the guy much more than any words.
    What a spoiled brat. He’s off my list for sure.

  16. Nolan

    Feb 2, 2019 at 3:18 pm

    He’s lucky the Prince didn’t make him disappear.

  17. cdj

    Feb 2, 2019 at 1:25 pm

    Year back at Tour Championship SG hit a drive from tee box where I was at the time. Shot started on a good line to which I responded “good shot” or the like. He did not like where it ended up and looked at me saying “yeah, nice shot” in his snarky voice while slamming the tee marker.

    Dude has Jameis Winston syndrome.

  18. Acemandrake

    Feb 2, 2019 at 1:18 pm

    No gratitude for God-given & earthly riches.

    When will he grow up?

    • Robert

      Feb 4, 2019 at 12:10 pm

      Will he EVER grow up. No more Callaway or Adidas until he is gone.

  19. Kolby

    Feb 2, 2019 at 12:51 pm

    Suspend Sergio Garcia from both Tours until AFTER Augusta! LOL

  20. Johnny balls

    Feb 2, 2019 at 12:44 pm

    Paspalum sucks. Saudi Arabia sucks. No booze. Screw that place.

    • francisco borja lopez diez

      Feb 4, 2019 at 7:27 am

      The players had a yacht next to their hotel in which they were being served alcohol afer 9 pm…and 25 girls to entertain from Russia, Poland…
      They had a concert with Mariah Carey as well as a dj session form DJ Tiesto. The country may not be your favorite place, but be sure these guys were treated much better than a regular tourist

      • john

        Feb 11, 2019 at 11:33 am

        A Mariah Carey concert sounds like ‘cruel and unusual punishment’ to me. Might explain Sergio’s meltdown.

      • stevez

        Feb 21, 2019 at 1:00 pm

        I thought I read he was happily married, new baby, and Masters Champ. Wass the problem now

  21. Alan Schwepps

    Feb 2, 2019 at 12:32 pm

    Gee I wonder if he’s going to get fined more than $98,000 that Li got dinged for his asinine rule violation.

    Make him pay to fix the green’s and fine him $250,000 for being a douche nozzle….

  22. dat

    Feb 2, 2019 at 12:00 pm

    Pathetic, this isn’t a drunken muni round, Sergio.

  23. Rory O Donnell

    Feb 2, 2019 at 11:14 am

    Spitting into holes and now this

  24. Bert Gwaltney

    Feb 2, 2019 at 10:09 am

    Sometimes I’m confused about “like” or “shank” If I click “like” does that mean I like that he was DQ’ed or “like” what he did. If I click “shank” does that mean I don’t agree with the DQ or agree with it.

    Maybe it’s rather I “like or shank” the article?

    I’m glad he was DQ’ed, and yes he’s had it coming for a long time. Good on you European Tour. Maybe the PGA Tour will see your example of enforcing the Rules of Golf.

  25. Denny Jones

    Feb 2, 2019 at 9:17 am

    DQ like this should be swift and have more bite. Instead of just a DQ, the penalty should be more severe. If they weren’t allow to participate in a major because of a fit of rage, the rage would disappear.

    • joe

      Feb 2, 2019 at 10:04 am

      Im a Sergio fan but I agree with you. This act stresses my affinity for him. And he is habitual so maybe a 3 event suspension?

      • Bert Gwaltney

        Feb 2, 2019 at 10:17 am

        Again he has embarrassed himself, displayed his lack of respect for the game and fellow competitors. I’ve had tried to accept his behavior as being immature, or having a fiery Spaniard temperament, but this goes past that.

        Sad news for the game and Champion golfer. I suspect he will lose all respect from those who love and support the game, the patrons.

      • Mower

        Feb 2, 2019 at 12:26 pm

        “I damaged a couple of greens.” WTF!?
        Yeah, time to crack down on this shit.

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News

Morning 9: 58 on the Korn Ferry Tour | Rory on possible return to policy board

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By Ben Alberstadt with Gianni Magliocco.

For comments: [email protected]

Good Friday morning, golf fans, may a bountiful weekend of golf be in store for you!

1. 58 on the Korn Ferry Tour

KFT staff report…”Frankie Capan III went crazy low Thursday on the Korn Ferry Tour. Nearly in record fashion.”

  • “Capan carded 13-under 58 in the opening round of the Veritex Bank Championship, matching the second lowest score in Korn Ferry Tour history. He fell one shy of Cristobal Del Solar’s record 57, set at the Astara Golf Championship presented by Mastercard earlier this year, but it was a heck of a show nonetheless.”
  • “The Minnesota native played an eight-hole stretch in 9-under Thursday, following an eagle at the par-5 ninth with seven straight birdies to begin the back nine at par-71 Texas Rangers Golf Club. He “cooled off” with a two-putt par at the long par-4 17th hole. He arrived at the par-5 18th hole at 13 under for the round, but he found a fairway bunker off the tee, laid up to 134 yards and missed his third shot left of the green. He chipped to 7 feet and drained the par putt to match the Korn Ferry Tour’s second-lowest score of 58, carded by Stephan Jaeger in the opening round of the 2016 Ellie Mae Classic at TPC Stonebrae.”
Full piece.

2. Team McIlowery starts strong

Paul Hodowanic for PGATour.com…”Late Thursday afternoon in New Orleans, Rory McIlroy rested his head on Shane Lowry’s shoulder.”

  • “It wasn’t the typical post-round moment, but this isn’t the typical event. McIlroy and Lowry teamed up for this week’s Zurich Classic of New Orleans, the PGA TOUR’s lone team event, and the all-Irish duo put on a show. Sporting matching pink-on-navy getups, McIlroy/Lowry opened in a best-ball 11-under 61 in Thursday’s Four-ball format at TPC Louisiana.”
  • “This partnership might have stemmed from a boozy brunch last fall, but their opening-round performance at the Zurich Classic of New Orleans gave the field a sobering reminder: They’ll be tough to top.”
Full piece.

3. LPGA Tour: Grace Kim in front

AP report…”Grace Kim shot a 7-under 64 at Wilshire Country Club to take the first-round lead Thursday in the LPGA Tour’s JM Eagle LA Championship.”

  • “Playing in the morning session, the 23-year-old Australian capped her bogey-free round with a chip-in birdie on the par-3 18th.”
  • “Well, I chunked my tee shot on the last hole 20 meters short and then I chipped it in it,” Kim said. “I think that’s pretty cool, in front of everyone
Full piece.

4. McIlroy on rejoining policy board

Golf Channel’s Ryan Lavner…”Rory McIlroy said Wednesday that he is willing to rejoin the PGA Tour policy board if the other player directors want him.”

  • “As first reported by the Guardian, Webb Simpson has submitted a letter stating that he’d like to resign from the board, but only if his vacant seat is filled by McIlroy, who stepped down last fall because of the toll it had taken on him professionally and personally.”
  • “Five months later, what has changed?”
  • “I think I can be helpful,” McIlroy said Wednesday ahead of the Zurich Classic of New Orleans, where he is partnering with Shane Lowry. “I don’t think there’s been much progress made in the last eight months, and I was hopeful that there would be. I think I could be helpful to the process. But only if people want me involved, I guess.”
Full piece.

5. Charlie Woods shoots 81 in U.S. Open qualifier

Golfweek’s Cameron Jourdan…”Charlie Woods is going to have to wait to play in the U.S. Open.”

“The 15-year-old son of Tiger Woods played Thursday in local qualifying for the United States Golf Association’s national championship, set for June 13-16 at Pinehurst No. 2 in North Carolina. Charlie played at The Legacy Golf & Tennis Club in Port St. Lucie, Florida, and he shot 9-over 81.”

“Charlie’s round featured a bogey on his opening hole, the par-4 first. He then doubled the par-5 second. A pair of pars followed before his lone birdie on the front, but another double the next hole, the par-4 sixth, had him turn in 4-over 40.”

Full piece.

6. Photos from the Zurich Classic

GolfWRX is live on site this week at the Zurich Classic of New Orleans for the PGA Tour’s one-and-only two-man team event.

Check out all our photos at the link below!

Full piece.
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Photos from the 2024 Zurich Classic of New Orleans

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GolfWRX is live on site this week at the Zurich Classic of New Orleans for the PGA Tour’s one-and-only two-man team event.

As usual, general galleries, WITBs, and pullout albums — including some pretty spicy custom putters and headcovers — await your viewing.

Be sure to check back for more photos from the Big Easy, as we’ll continue to update this page with additional galleries throughout the week.

General Albums

WITB Albums

Pullout Albums

See what GolfWRXers are saying about our photos from the Zurich Classic of New Orleans in the forums.

 

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Morning 9: Tiger’s TGL teammates | Woosnam’s criticism of Cantlay | Rory’s return to tour policy board

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By Ben Alberstadt with Gianni Magliocco.

For comments: [email protected]

Good Tuesday morning, golf fans, as the PGA Tour heads to New Orleans for the Zurich Classic.

1. 15-year-old finishes top 20 on KFT

Jay Coffin for Golf Digest…”During a week when most eyes were on Scottie Scheffler and Nelly Korda, the 15-year-old lefty finished off an incredible week with a five-under 66 in the final round of the Korn Ferry Tour’s LECOM Suncoast Classic at Lakewood Ranch in Florida.”

  • “After opening with 68-66-70, Russell finished at 14-under-par total to tie for 20th place. The finish in which he jumped 28 positions on the leaderboard on the final day, gives him an exemption into next week’s Veritex Bank Championship at Rangers Park in Arlington, Texas. He’s the youngest player to finish inside the top 20 on the PGA of Korn Ferry tours, according to records that go back to 1983.”
Full piece.

2. Understandably, Nelly WDs

Golf Channel’s Ryan Lavner…”Nelly Korda’s bid for a record-setting sixth consecutive win will have to wait a few weeks.”

  • “A day after capturing the Chevron Championship during a marathon final round in Houston, Korda announced on social media that she was withdrawing from this week’s JM Eagle LA Championship.”
  • “It was not an easy decision,” she wrote. “After the unbelievable week at the Chevron and grinding through the mental and physical challenges of four events in the past five weeks, I am definitely feeling exhausted. With so much still to come throughout 2024, I feel I need to listen to my body and get some rest, so I can be ready for the remainder of the season.”
Full piece.

3. Scheffler’s impressive No. 1 feat

Golf Channel’s Brentley Romine…”After Scheffler’s victory Monday morning at the RBC Heritage, Scheffler upped his points average to 15.016 and increased his advantage in the Official World Golf Ranking over No. 2 Rory McIlroy to more than double McIlroy’s 7.365 average, meaning Scheffler is ranked further ahead of No. 2 than No. 2 is ahead of the last-ranked player.”

  • “The last time a No. 1 player had a greater points average was Woods, who was at 15.4564 on Dec. 6, 2009. But Woods was less than seven average points ahead of No. 2 Phil Mickelson at the time. Earlier that year, Woods was 7.735 ahead of Mickelson, which is the last time the gap between Nos. 1 and 2 was greater than Scheffler’s current 7.651 advantage.”
Full piece.

4. Zurich field notes

PGATour.com’s Adam Stanley…”Rory McIlroy will make his tournament debut alongside good pal, Ryder Cup teammate, and Irishman Shane Lowry – a duo that was firmed up during a celebratory lunch after the Ryder Cup last fall… Patrick Cantlay and Xander Schauffele will try to reprise their 2022 win here. Cantlay and Schauffele have both the Foursomes and Four-ball scoring records at this event… Davis Riley and Nick Hardy will defend their 2023 title. No team has gone back-to-back… Three sets of brothers (and two sets of twins!) will play together with twins Rasmus and Nicolai Højgaard and Parker and Pierceson Coody in the field along with Alex and Matt Fitzpatrick. Alex Fitzpatrick and Rasmus Højgaard are sponsor invites…”

  • “Billy Horschel, who won last week at the Corales Puntacana Championship, will be without his previous partner Sam Burns, as Burns and his wife are expecting their first child any day. Horschel will instead be paired with fellow University of Florida alum Tyson Alexander. Horschel has won the Zurich Classic when it was both an individual and team event… Other notable pairings include Collin Morikawa and Kurt Kitayama, Sahith Theegala and Will Zalatoris, and Nick Taylor and Adam Hadwin. The Canadian duo finished runner-up a year ago and would like nothing more than to show Presidents Cup International Team captain Mike Weir how well they play together… Steve Stricker will play his second TOUR event this season (after earning his way into THE PLAYERS Championship), teaming up with Matt Kuchar.”
Full piece.

5. Tiger’s teammates

Field Level Media report…”Tiger Woods announced Monday that Max Homa, Tom Kim and Kevin Kisner have joined his Jupiter Links GC TGL team.”

  • “The virtual golf league headed by Woods and Rory McIlroy will begin its inaugural season next January. Woods also unveiled the team’s logo.”
  • “I have already shared my excitement and optimism for TGL as a league and product,” said Woods. “Now that we have finalized our roster with a team of world-class golfers, I am even more confident that this group will proudly represent the Jupiter (Fla.) area and connect with our fans for years to come.”
Full piece.

6. Woosnam questions Cantlay’s decision

Our Matt Vincenzi…”After the horn sounded to suspend play due to darkness, Cantlay, who’s ball was in the fairway on the 18th hole, had a decision to make. With over 200 yards into the green and extreme winds working against the shot, conventional wisdom would be to wait until Monday morning to hit the shot.”

  • “On the other hand, if he could finish the hole, he may just want to get the event over with so he could get out of Hilton Head.”
  • “Curiously, Cantlay chose neither of those options. After hitting 3-wood into the green, and still coming up short, the former FedEx Cup champion chose to mark his ball and chip and putt on Monday morning.”
  • “Ian Woosnam, who was watching from home, took to X to give his thoughts on Cantlay’s decision making.”
  • “Cantlay would end up getting up and down for par when play resumed at 8:00 am Monday morning.”
Full piece.

7. JT on Scheffler’s “weird” equipment choice

Our Matt Vincenzi…”After Justin Thomas’ third round of the RBC Heritage, the two-time major champion went in the broadcast booth alongside the CBS crew.”

  • “While Thomas was watching Scottie Scheffler play on the back nine of his third round, he wondered aloud why Scottie uses high-numbered golf balls.”
  • “Does anybody else think it’s weird that Scottie uses high numbers? I don’t know if I’ve ever seen an elite player use high-numbered golf balls.”
  • “Amanda Balionis who was on the grounds chimed in, reporting that analyst Dottie Pepper had wondered the same thing earlier that day.”
  • “I’ve been going about this wrong my whole life,” Thomas jokingly said.
Full piece.

8. Rory to rejoin PGA Tour policy board

Mark Schlabach for ESPN…”Four-time major championship winner Rory McIlroy is poised to return to the PGA Tour’s policy board, pending a vote by the board, which could come as early as this week, sources confirmed to ESPN on Tuesday.”

  • “One of the PGA Tour’s most vocal supporters during its three-year battle with LIV Golf, McIlroy abruptly resigned as a player director on the tour’s influential policy board in November.”
  • “He is expected to replace policy board player director Webb Simpson, who intends to step away before his two-year term expires in 2025.”
Full piece.

9. Weir names Presidents Cup assistants

PGA Tour report…”International Team Captain Mike Weir announced Ernie Els, Trevor Immelman, Geoff Ogilvy and Camilo Villegas as captain’s assistants for the 2024 Presidents Cup, which will be played at The Royal Montreal Golf Club in Montreal, Canada, Sept. 24-29.

Full piece.
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