It is a much-changed Sergio Garcia this year who has started the new season seemingly at peace with himself for the first time in his professional career.
Perhaps it is because he has risen to number two in the world rankings, having begun last year in 12th. He now finds himself less than three ranking points behind the injured Tiger Woods.
It could be that the plight of his stricken friend, mentor and compatriot, Seve Ballesteros, who lies in a Spanish hospital bed fighting a brain tumour, has forced him to take control of his emotions.
Or it just might be an age thing. Garcia is 29 and the tempestuous Latin has grown up.
The Garcia of old would have much to be wound up about. He was part of the losing European Ryder Cup team last year in Kentucky, where some of the in-your-face tactics of the American players riled him. He recorded a second place at the US PGA last summer to Padraig Harrington, the third time he had finished runner up in all the majors, following on from the infamous missed putt at Carnoustie in 2007 that saw Harrington snatch the Open title away from him. Since then the mantle of being the best player in the world never to win a major has grown ever larger. He has had his moments, has Sergio, including the time in America last year when he missed a short putt and spat in the hole, an act which provoked an immediate and heartfelt apology.
But the Garcia of 2009 is at ease with the world, smiling and back-slapping, cracking jokes, and being so honest that he would surprise the Sergio of twelve months ago.
Take Tiger Woods. Garcia does not need reminding that without Woods he could have won a few majors by now, let alone be the world’s number one. In the absence of Woods, due to return in March having been out for eight months following knee surgery, he has prospered greedily, and he knows it. “There’s no doubt Tiger’s absence has made an impact on the rest of us,” he says, gazing over the golf course we meet at towards the 18th hole. “The gap’s been closed and we’re all wondering how good Tiger will be on his return.”
Yet it is a return Garcia craves for. “This might seem strange coming from a guy who has been beaten so many times by him, but everything about golf is much better than it’s ever been and that’s mainly down to Tiger.
“I am proud and privileged to be a small part of the history the guy’s creating. Not many players have had the chance to play alongside a golfer with that calibre and that’s how I see it. Or at least that’s how I see it now.”
The forthcoming return of Woods, then, is not an unwelcome development. “I am happy to have become the number two golfer in the world, and I believe it’s achievable to become the number one, but I want to do it with Tiger around, just as I want to win big tournaments with Tiger in the field. Without him, the feat is just not the same.”
The new Garcia sees the funny side of it all, too. Ask him what the difference is between him and Woods and his self-deprecating reply could have hurt last year.
“I’d say 14 majors, actually,” he replies, with a philosophical grin. “It’s his mental strength, which is revealed at its best with his short game. Even when it’s bad it’s good, like my football team, Real Madrid, who have won many times when playing bad football.” He smiles. “Well, maybe not this season. Tiger’s “B” game is better than most of the players’ “A” games.”
The jocular comment about Woods’ 14 majors is, of course, pertinent for a man who has failed to notch up a single major yet. Has he grown sick of trying to defend this record?
“Not any more,” he insists. “A year or two ago it bothered me but now I see it for what it is. You see, if I kept on finishing 40th and had never given myself a chance to win a major nobody would ever bring it up with me. But they do because I am knocking so hard on the door. If I keep on getting these opportunities then, sooner or later, I will take one. I’ve always believed it will happen, and I’ve always felt that the first one is the toughest one to win.”
But what if it does not? What if Garcia becomes one of those best sportsmen never to win the big one, like Ivan Lendl at Wimbledon, or Stirling Moss in the Formula One world drivers’ title?
“”Do I have to win a major in my career?” he asks himself. “No. “Would I like to win one? No. I’d like to win many. But if I finish my career without one I won’t see my life as incomplete, not if I know I’ve done everything in my powers to win. I’m not beating myself up over one, even if it remains my biggest ambition.”
Garcia is clearly relaxed. He was talking to promote the launch of the TaylorMade R9 driver, unique because it is the game’s first fully adjustable driver which, according to the Spaniard, has stuck a further 15 yards on his drives, and allows a 75-yard, side-to-side trajectory change. The world awaits to see what impact this revolutionary development will make.
He was also in this part of the world when Colin Montgomerie was announced as next year’s European Ryder Cup captain, an appointment, despite Jose Maria Olazabal missing out, Garcia approves of. “I don’t think there’s anyone in European golf who doesn’t believe that Monty will be an exceptional captain, and an exceptional motivator,” is his view. “We all know what the Ryder Cup means to Monty, and what it has done to his game.”
The same can be said of Garcia, which makes his next statement all the more surprising. “You know, it was really tough losing to the Americans,” he admits, as the winter warmth of the sun glowed on his face. “That’s the second time after Brookline in 1999, and it’s much more fun winning it, as I have done between then and now.
“But as time has passed, and I’ve given it some thought, I’ve come to realise that the Ryder Cup needed America to win. As bad as that may sound, and as hard as it was to lose a trophy that had become European property, there’s no doubt that another European win could have damaged its interest and following. I hope we win it back next year, I really do, but it was America’s turn this time, and that’s a good thing.” Even if he felt one or two Americans, notably Anthony Kim, were over-zealous? “Everyone gets over-excited in the Ryder Cup but I don’t think it’s ever meant in a bad way.”
For once his own game, normally so intimidating in past Ryder Cups, let him down at Valhalla, but Garcia insists he is uninterested in personal quests. “Everyone tells me how good I’ve been in the Ryder Cup,” he says. “But I am being honest when I say I have no idea what my record is, and I don’t care. All I know is that I’ve now been part of a team that’s won three and lost two. I’d take no individual points and a team win every time over five points and a team loss, although five and a win is the best option.”
A sentiment Ballesteros would undoubtedly share. As it is, he continues to fight against the tumour that has already put him through three operations, and it is clear Garcia’s thoughts are never too far from him.
“I think, and I hope, that Seve’s getting better,” he announces. “It’s been very tough for all of us when you see a guy like Seve who’s been so big for the game of golf in Spain and in the world, and who took me under his wing when I was a 14-year-old golfer and helped nurture me into what I am today, to be struggling so much. He is a man who has fought all his life and he is fighting now. You have to put such thoughts away when you play golf, but off the course they are never too out of your mind.
“I’d love to see him play golf again but, more important, I just want him to recover and have a nice life with his family. I have spoken to his family many times and I hope my positive energy is getting through to him. Here we are talking about Ryder Cups and majors, but Seve puts everything into perspective. I’m not happy if I miss a putt but then you think of Seve and you realise you could be doing a lot worse.”
Words which a less mature Garcia might not have uttered a year or two ago. But with his relationship with Morgan Leigh-Norman, Greg Norman’s daughter, going strong again, and his new-found inner peace, the boy has undoubtedly become a man.
Besides, he sees 2009 as his turn after last year’s Spanish sporting success story. “I was there at the final to watch Spain become European football champions last year, and I watched Rafa Nadal beat Federer at Wimbledon, albeit on TV after I finished the European Open, as I did when he beat Federer again in Australia.”
A young Spaniard beating the master in a major tournament and becoming number one. “Let’s see if it can happen again in a different sport,” he adds, with a laugh.
The old Sergio did not stand much of a chance. But the new Sergio? It might just happen.
Sergio Garcia will be using the new TaylorMade R9 driver this season, the world’s first fully adjustable driver that gives golfers the ability to try 24 different settings in one club. See www.taylormadegolf.com
