Hot Garcia cruises to Singapore triumph
singapore — Sergio Garcia produced a masterful display of bogey-free golf over 27 holes on Sunday to open his season with a five-shot victory at the weatherdisrupted Singapore Open, the Spaniard making his move early and dominating from the front.
The 38-year-old US Masters champion signed for a finalround three-under 68 in glorious sunshine to finish on 14-under 270, well clear of Japan’s Satoshi Kodaira and South Africa’s Shaun Norris, who tied for second on nine-under-par.
“I played nicely but it wasn’t easy. There were some very challenging holes but I played very well and then was just steady on the back-nine to make sure I wasn’t making any bogeys,” Garcia said. “It was a great week overall. You still need to hit a lot of good shots to do well here and I was able to do that.”
Garcia had returned to the course at dawn to complete his third round after weather delays had forced an early finish on Saturday and the Spaniard hit the ground running, wiping out a two-shot deficit with four birdies in his last nine holes.
After reeling in overnight leaders Chapchai Nirat and Danthai Boonma and starting the last round with a one-shot lead, Garcia put on an iron-play masterclass as he surged clear of the field on the hazardous front nine at the par-71 Serapong Course. The co-sanctioned Asian and Japan Tour victory is the 32nd of Garcia’s professional career and sets him up nicely for the defence of his Dubai Desert Classic title on the European Tour next week. —