Once ranked number two in the world, and known for almost overtaking an ailing Tiger Woods for the top spot, Spanish golfer Sergio Garcia seems to be making quite a stir in the world of golf lately. However, if you’re thinking it’s been about his latest victory on the green, think again.
In fact, it seems to be that the slump that has befallen Garcia has been in the name of love. Yes, you read right, love.
Although he has often been portrayed unsympathetically and criticized in the press for his childish attitude; who knew Sergio Garcia was such a romantic? Apparently though, for Garcia, a bad break up is reason enough to set him off his game. Garcia, who had been dating Australian golfer Greg Norman’s daughter, got the news from Morgan that they would no longer be an item when the couple were in Miami over 2 months prior.
Since then, Garcia has been playing abominably and finishing in the 20’s for tournaments that he won just last year. To add insult to ‘injury’, last weekend at Turnberry Paul Casey (undoubtedly capitalizing on Garcia’s broken-heart induced slump) managed to surpass Garcia; banishing the Spanish golfer to fourth place. This is, no doubt, a frustrating position for a golfer that was singled out to beat Tiger Woods only a few months ago.
In a very candid press conference Garcia had this to say about his less than stellar performance:
“Myself, when I am not feeling happy on a golf course and not up for it, that is the way it is. You can’t do anything about it. I can’t do well. Obviously the break-up with Morgan didn’t help. You get over some things. Others take a little longer.”
One thing is for sure, it is definitely refreshing to see an athlete that is not squeamish about letting the press see his vulnerable side. When asked whether he finds it difficult to handle his emotional woes in the public eye, without hesitation, he replied: “No, I wasn’t sad because my relationship was public because everybody knew about it. I was sad because of my feelings. It is within me. It is in my heart. I am not thinking what other people are thinking about it. I am thinking what I am thinking about it. At the end of the day a relationship is still a relationship.”
However, coming from Spain, a land of bull fighters and Latin machismo, I am unsure as to whether his countrymen will find his delicate sensibilities as interesting as I do.
You can read the full article by John Hopkins and Jack Malvern at the times online here.
Comments are closed.