Sergio Garcia was born on January 9th, 1980 in Borriol, an isolated town on the east coast, near Castellon.
Sergio began playing golf as a child. He soon discovered he had a natural talent for it. His father Victor Garcia was his mentor, teacher, and coach when Sergio started to swing his first club at age 3. Victor was a professional golfer after he had been a caddie at Club de Campo de Madrid. He then became a coach at Club de Campo del Mediterraneo in Borriol, where he managed Sergio’s career under the close supervision of Consuelo, his mother.
Sergio was a standout player from the start. He was just 12 years old when everyone knew he was special. He made it to the top in a European Tour event at 15 years of age and turned professional three years later.
Garcia quickly found his place amongst the best. After only a few months of competition, his name was all over the world. He qualified for the 1999 Ryder Cup. The shot that “El Nino”, a shot that was recollected all over the globe, made headlines at the PGA Championship held at Medinah Country Club in the same year. Sergio, who was trailing Tiger Woods by one stroke, hit an amazing shot from a terrible lie behind a tree on the 16th hole and managed to get the ball to the green. Woods won the tournament, but that shot will remain in our collective memory.
Sergio has enjoyed a remarkable career since then. Sergio is a member of the OWGR top ten and has won tournaments all over Europe, America, Africa, Asia.
Sergio is a Ryder Cup player who lives, breathes, and bleeds Ryder Cup. He was part of the European Ryder Cup team between 1999 and 2012 (except for 2010), and holds an impressive record.
Sergio is a passionate golfer and loves to play tennis and football when he can. He is also a big fan of Real Madrid. His passion for football led him to take on the dual roles of President and player at Borriol CF, a Third Division Spanish football league team. On September 12, 2010, he made his debut against Ribarroja FC.
Early years and amateur career
Garcia started playing golf when he was three years old. His father Victor is a professional club player. At the age of 12, Garcia won his club championship. At age 12, Garcia won his club championship. Jason Hak, an amateur, broke Garcia’s record by beating Garcia’s record of 107 days in November 2008 at UBS Hong Kong Open. Garcia was the youngest European Amateur winner in 1995. In 1997, he won the Boys Amateur Championship. As an amateur, he won the 1997 Catalan Open professional tournament.
He won the 1998 Muirfield Amateur Championship and reached the semifinals of the U.S. Amateur. He was also second in the 1998 Argentine Open as a low amateur and won the Pereira Iraola Cup.
Professional career
García turned professional in 1999 after shooting the lowest amateur score in the 1999 Masters Tournament. His first title on the European Tour came in his sixth start as a professional, in July 1999 at the Irish Open. He first achieved worldwide prominence with a duel against Tiger Woods in the 1999 PGA Championship, where he eventually finished second, losing by one stroke. Late in the final round, García with his ball up against a tree trunk in the right rough on the 16th hole, and the green hidden from view, swung hard with his eyes shut and hit a low curving fade that ran up onto the green. As the shot traveled, he sprinted madly into the fairway and then scissor-kick jumped to see the result. Shortly afterward he became the youngest player ever to compete in the Ryder Cup.
In 2002, during a practice round, García made an albatross (double eagle) on the par-5 second hole at the Masters, one of the few players to have ever done so. On the 575-yard (526 m) hole at the Augusta National Golf Club, he holed a 253-yard (231 m) 2-iron following a 325-yard (297 m) drive.
When García first turned professional, he had an unorthodox swing with a circular loop and long large lag, and this method drew comparisons to Ben Hogan, one of the best players of all time. But during the 2003 season, he worked towards making his swing more conventional but has largely kept his original method. In his early years, he repeatedly gripped, released, and regripped his hands on the club handle before finally taking a shot. This “waggle” habit created a stir, especially at the 2002 U.S. Open when some spectators shouted out, “Hit the ball, Sergio!”, and some people audibly counted the number of regrips into the twenties. Since then he has eliminated the habit. Responding to criticism of his swing, he said, “My swing works for me, so why should I change it? I prefer to have a natural swing and play well rather than a perfect swing and not be able to play well.”
Ryder Cup star
Garcia is a member of every European Ryder Cup Team since 1999. Garcia has been a member of six winning sides, and his singles win in 2018 made her the all-time Ryder Cup point leader with 25 1/2 points in 9 appearances. This surpasses Nick Faldo’s 25 in 11 appearances.
Garcia won his fourball and foursome matches at the K Club in the Republic of Ireland in the 2006 Ryder Cup. He beat David Toms, Brett Wetterich, and Tiger Woods, and Jim Furyk in four balls. He teamed up again with Olazabal on day two and won both their matches against Phil Mickelson (foursomes) and Chris DiMarco (fourballs). Garcia was widely expected to win the Ryder Cup singles. However, Stewart Cink defeated him 4 and 3. The cup was won by Europe again with 18 1/2 points to the United States’s 9 1/2.
PGA Tour
García in 2004
Garcia, then 21, won his first PGA Tour event, the 2001 MasterCard Colonial, Fort Worth, Texas. He was also the winner of the Buick Classic, New York, the following year. At 20 years old, he was the youngest Tour winner after Tiger Woods. Garcia won the Mercedes Championships in January 2002. In 2004, he won the EDS Byron Nelson Championship. He also won the Buick Classic in 2004. At the 2005 Booz Alley Classic, Garcia won his sixth PGA Tour title. He has 11 PGA Tour wins, including the 2017 Masters Tournament. He plays a restricted schedule on the European Tour where he has 16 tour-level victories.
2007: Near-miss at the Open Championship
Garcia was criticized for his spitting incident at WGC-CA Championship in March 2007. After three-putting for bogey, Garcia spits into the bottom of his third round. Garcia was close to winning The Open Championship, his favorite of the four major championships in 2007, after missing the cut at the first two major championships. After the three first rounds, Garcia held the lead and had a lead of three shots over Steve Stricker. He also had a lead of six shots over the rest of his field at the beginning of the fourth round.
Garcia led by four shots at one point of the final round. However, he was unable to make par on the 7th, 8th and 5th holes to bring him back in the field. Garcia needed a par to win the last hole but couldn’t get up and down from his greenside bunker. He would have been his first major professional golfer if he had to putt the last hole from 8 feet (2.4m) on Sunday. He missed the putt by a fraction and was forced to play a playoff of four holes with Padraig Harrington. He ultimately lost by one stroke.
Garcia appeared to suggest that his poor decisions had cost him the Open Championship in his post-round news conference. Garcia couldn’t convert his birdie attempt for the playoff on the par-3 16th hole. His tee shot hit a flagstick, but it bounced off the green 20 feet (6m) away. He stated, “It’s not a first time, unfortunately.” “I don’t know… “I don’t know… After the third round, he signed an incorrect scorecard and was disqualified from the 2007 PGA Championship.
2008: Victory at the Players Championship and near-miss at the PGA Championship
Garcia’s win at the 2008 Players Championship
In a sudden-death match against Paul Goydos, Garcia won The Players Championship of the PGA Tour. The playoff started at the par-3 17th. Goydos hit an inflatable pitching wedge and it crashed into the water. Garcia, however, played a sand wedge within four feet (1.3m) of the hole. Garcia won the match with a par, while Goydos had a double bogey.
Garcia narrowly missed winning his second professional major championship at the 2008 PGA Championship. It was played at the South Course Oakland Hills Country Club in Detroit. Padraig Harrington, who had a lead of Garcia on the back nine, was able to erase that lead to win the title. Garcia was two strokes behind for second place at the PGA Championship. Garcia’s biggest mistake in the final round was his misjudging of his 16th shot. He played into strong winds and found water in front of the green on the par-4 hole. This cost him the sole owner of the lead. Garcia said that he felt like he responded well to another close miss in a major championship. He was clearly very skilled on the back nine and things just went his way.
He won his first European Tour title for over three years on 26 October 2008 at his home course, Club de Campo del Mediterraneo, Castellon, Spain. He rose to third place in the Official World Golf Rankings, which is a record for him. Seve Ballesteros was in recovery from multiple surgeries from the brain tumor that ultimately claimed his life. He was a proud winner and dedicated the victory to him. He won the 2008 HSBC Champion, the first event of the 2009 European Tour season. It was played in a playoff against Oliver Wilson. He was able to climb to a career-high 2nd in the Official World Golf Rankings. This victory replaced Phil Mickelson, who had in fact won the HSBC Champion in 2007. In 2008, Garcia made $6,979 959 in 26 events, more than any other golfer.
2009–2010: Slump in form, competitive break
After his 2008 success, Garcia had a disappointing 2009 season. He rarely competed and was ranked 74th in the PGA Tour money ranking. Garcia had more success on European Tour, where he placed tenth at the Race to Dubai. Garcia declared that he would be taking a break from golf after failing to make the cut at the US PGA Championship in 2010. He also fell out of the Top 50 Official World Golf Rankings. His slump was primarily due to his struggles with the putter, as his ball-striking skills remained among the top in the world. Colin Montgomerie, the European captain, announced Garcia as his fourth vice-captain at the 2010 Ryder Cup at Celtic Manor.
2011–2012: Return to form
Garcia returned to competitive golf in 2010 after acquiring a new grip for his putting. This resulted in better results on the greens at tournaments in 2011. After 36 holes, Garcia was close to the lead in the 2011 Transitions Championship as well as the 2011 Byron Nelson Championship. However, both times were wiped out on the weekend.
Garcia was infected with a virus and had to pull out of qualifying for the 2011 Open Championship. Garcia originally had no intention of qualifying for the U.S. Open 2011. He was in the bottom 50 in the OWGR and was not guaranteed an automatic entry. After being among the top four players at a Memphis qualifying tournament, Garcia was awarded a spot in U.S. Open. Garcia performed well in all four rounds at the U.S. Open and finished in a tie for seventh at five-under-279. Garcia tied for ninth in the 2011 Open Championship at Royal St George’s. This was Garcia’s 17th top-10 finish at a major.
Garcia nearly broke his 2008 winless streak when he lost to Pablo Larrazabal at The BMW International Open’s fifth sudden-death playoff hole. After the 11th hole, Garcia was leading the tournament with a remarkable stretch of holes that saw him score three birdies, two eagles, and two bogies in six holes. This included holes 6 through 11. His charge to the end was thwarted by four bogeys in five of his holes. He needed a birdie at that last hole to reach the playoff. Both players made consecutive birdies on the extra two holes (both par 5s), before moving onto the par 4s. Garcia missed a 30-foot (9-m) eagle shot for victory at the fifth hole. However, he ran the effort four feet (1.3 m) beyond the hole. Larrazabal was able to hole a 2-foot birdie putt, but the putt failed.
Garcia’s second-place finish at the BMW International Open secured qualification for the 2011 Open Championship, Royal St George’s. This exemption is available through the current form of money. Garcia finished tied for 9th at the Open Championship, which was his best finish in four years. He finished tied for 12th at the 2011 PGA Championship, extending his streak of 50 consecutive majors, which is the longest among active players. Garcia broke a three-year drought by winning back-to-back titles in his native country, Spain, at the Castello Masters as well as the Andalucia Masters. Garcia won the Castello Masters with a score of 27 under par, 11 strokes in front of the field. It was the third-highest margin of victory on the European Tour. This was beaten only by Tiger Woods’ 15-stroke victory at the 2000 U.S Open and Ernie Els’ 13-stroke win at the 2005 BMW Asian Open. Garcia dedicated the victory to Seve Ballesteros after the win. He stated, “That was for Seve.”
Garcia won the Andalucia Masters the following week at the Club de Golf Valderrama. This course is widely regarded as one the most difficult on the European Tour. After a tight final round, Garcia edged Miguel Angel Jimenez by one stroke. After his back-to-back wins, Garcia climbed back into the Top 20 of the Official World Golf Ranking. Garcia won the Wyndham Championship in August 2012 to end a four-year drought on the PGA Tour. Garcia was also able to secure his spot on the 2012 Ryder Cup Team. Garcia won the Iskandar Johor Open on the Asian Tour in December 2012 with a final round of 61.
2013: Controversy
Garcia was tied for first place at the 2013 Players Championship. He hit three balls into the water on the 17th hole and 18th hole, finishing quadruple bogey, double bogey. He was tied for eighth. Garcia and Tiger Woods, who won the tournament, had a feud after the tournament was over an incident that took place during the third round. Garcia was then asked by European Tour players about his meeting with Woods at U.S. Open. He replied, “We’ll have Woods round every night”. Fried chicken will be served. This comment was viewed as racist. Garcia later that night issued an apology and issued another apology the following day. He said that his remarks were “totally stupid” and inappropriate.
2014–2016
After defeating Mikko Ionen in a playoff, Garcia won the Commercial Bank Qatar Masters in January 2014. He was relegated to the top 10 in the world after this win.
Garcia was joint runner-up at the 2014 Open Championship in July 2014. He finished two strokes behind Rory McIlroy. Garcia was second in the Open Championship to finish as runner-up. This was his fourth major championship win. McIlroy was seven strokes ahead of Garcia, but Garcia managed to get within two after an eagle at the 10th hole. His challenge was over when he missed his second shot at the par-three 15th hole bunker. He would bogey to be three strokes behind the leader. Garcia moved back into the top five of the world rankings with this finish.
Garcia’s 2015 season ended with the 2015 Players Championship, where he tied Rickie Fowler and Kevin Kisner at 12 over par after 72 holes. After the three-hole playoff, Garcia has eliminated two strokes behind Fowler & Kisner. Fowler would win in sudden-death. He won the Asian Tour Ho Tram Open in Phuoc Thuan (Vietnam) beating Lin Wen-tang, Himmat Rai, and Thaworn Wiratchant in a four-way playoff.
Garcia was very close to winning another PGA Tour win at The Honda Classic, just like the year before at The Players Championship. The Australian won by one shot in a showdown with Adam Scott. Garcia won the AT&T Byron Nelson Championship in May. He defeated Brooks Koepka in a playoff. This was Garcia’s first win on the PGA Tour since 2012 and his ninth career victory. He tied Seve Ballesteros for the most victories by a Spanish-born golfer.
2017: First major championship win
On January 15, 2017, García completed a wire-to-wire victory in the Omega Dubai Desert Classic for his first European Tour title in over three years. The victory was García’s 12th of his career and he finished 3 strokes ahead of Henrik Stenson. After winning against the other top golfers around Europe, Garcia said “Hopefully it will be the beginning of an amazing year.”
2017 Masters win
Garcia won the Masters Tournament on 9 April 2017 with victory on the first sudden-death playoff hole against Justin Rose. This was his 74th major championship. Garcia was the third Spanish player to win Masters after Jose Maria Olazabal and Seve Ballesteros. It was also the 60th birthday of Ballesteros, so Garcia won the victory.
Garcia shot rounds of 71,69-70-70 in the first three rounds to reach the final round at six-under-par. He was also in the co-lead along with Rose who played together in that group. After the 2007 Open Championship, Garcia was now the 54-hole leader/co-lead at major championships. Garcia started the final round strong, making two birdies in his first three holes. He quickly built a three-shot lead. Rose returned however and after Garcia’s bogeys at the 10th, and 11th, Rose took a two-shot lead.
The 13th hole proved pivotal as Rose missed a birdie putt and Garcia scrambled for a par to close the gap to two shots. Garcia would birdie the next hole, and then eagled the par-five fifteenth to tie Rose. Rose was able to convert the par-five 16th hole tee shot, and they were tied at one. Rose would make a mistake on the 17th and drop his shot. This left both players tied for the 72nd hole. Rose’s birdie putt on the 18th hole was a disappointment as both players missed their approach shots. Garcia putts five feet to win the tournament, but Rose pushed it back and won a playoff. Both players were at 9-under par after 72 holes.
Rose played the 18th hole once more. His tee shot hit into the pine straw and his second shot was stopped by trees. He could only advance his ball about 50 yards. Rose played his third shot to the same area of green as he did during regulation play. Garcia’s approach was within twelve feet. Rose missed Rose’s par putt on the left side, leaving Garcia with only two putts to win. He needed only one to hole his birdie putt, his first major championship.
Rest of 2017
After 15 years of service, Garcia announced his departure from TaylorMade on 9 October 2017.
He won the Andalucia Valderrama Masters two weeks later. He also won the Omega Dubai Desert Classic, the Masters and it was the first win in three European Tour seasons. He spoke a few days later about rising tensions in Spain following the Catalan independence debate and urged the country to “be more together”.
Garcia made a big hint ahead of the season-ending DP World Tour Championship Dubai in November. He had played a full set of Callaway Golf Company’s Dubai clubs and was close to signing an equipment contract with Callaway Golf Company.
After his three wins, Garcia was named European Tour Golfer Of The Year in December.
2018
García, a 21-year old Spanish golfer has been rising in the ranks of golf and was on fire this week. He played 27 holes without bogeys to win SMBC Singapore Open by five strokes over Kodaira with a four-under round back nine finish followed up with three more pars for his final day’s total 68.
2018 Masters
In the first round of this year’s Masters Tournament, Garcia set a record for most strokes on one hole in tournament history with an unlucky 13. Despite that setback and having to play through pain from injuries sustained earlier in his career, he made it into the second-to-last group at Augusta National Golf Club before ultimately missing out on defending his title by shooting 81–78.
Rest of 2018
Garcia was part of the European Ryder Cup-winning European team that won at Le Golf National in Paris, France, on 28-30 September 2018. He was 3-1-0 and won his singles against Rickie Fowler (2 & 1). Thomas Bjorn, the European captain, made Garcia a captain’s choice despite Garcia’s inconsistent play throughout 2018 but was selected for his passion and record at the Ryder Cup.
After a four-shot win at Real Club Valderrama, Spain, Garcia won his Andalucia Valderrama Masters title hosted by Sergio Garcia Foundation on 22 October 2018.
2020
The Spaniard is celebrating his third major win in a decade, and he’s not done yet!
In 2023, Garcia ended his partnership with Callaway Golf after just two years. He then went on to dominate the PGA Tour for months afterward – winning three tournaments across different decades throughout the year. In October of that same year, García won at Sanderson Farms Championship in Mississippi; it was during this victory when he had finally achieved success as an American professional golfer.
Tennis debut
García and Amer Delić’s partnership in the semi-professional doubles tournament didn’t last long; they lost their opening match at a Men’s UTR Pro Tennis event.
Personal life
In July 2017, García married Golf Channel reporter Angela Akins. Together, they have one daughter named Ariana who was born in 2018. His sister Mar is married to the footballer Pablo Hernández and together with their other siblings he maintains residences in Orlando Florida where his wife resides as a work-from-home mom for her parents’ business; Borriol Spain which is his hometown football club CF Borriol president/chairman of whom he also plays occasionally on behalf of them at Tercera División level until June 2018 when it became official that newly acquired chairman Jose Antonio Lopez Lera would be taking over these duties going forward. He has remained an honorary member since then and continues to reside there because of it.
The father of two, García does not have any time to spare for golf or soccer as he is busy juggling being a full-time dad and a professional golfer. He had an amazing 2018 season which included the Master’s victory at Augusta National Golf Club where his daughter Azalea was named after both the famed flowers that can be found all over this prestigious course in Georgia and also one of its legendary holes (the par 5 13th hole with green jacket) on which Garcí made memorable par while wearing his coveted green jacket – thus winning him first major title ever!
In addition to having such perseverance from competing against some tough competition, José has always been passionate about the football club Real Madrid who asked him if they could use their honorary kickoff.
