The Press and Journal (Inverness, Highlands, and Islands)
Garcia gets to grips with slim chances INASSOCIATIONWITH
Spaniardbreaksinnewequipment insteadofchasingRacetoDubaicrown
Sergio Garcia insists he has no regrets at leaving himself just a 2% chance of winning the Race to Dubai for the first time as he gets to grips with a surprising change of equipment.
Garcia can finish the season as European number one by claiming a fourth win of the season in the DP World Tour championship but only if leader Tommy Fleetwood is outside the top 12 and Justin Rose fourth or worse.
The Masters champion has not played since victory in the Andalucia Valderrama Masters, an event hosted by his own foundation, and therefore missed three lucrative Rolex Series events.
Given that he is playing with new equipment on a Jumeirah Golf Estates course which is not one of his favourites, that 2% chance of topping the money list could even be somewhat optimistic.
“Winning would be great but I’m not going to change my whole life for it,” the 37-year-old said of his refusal to change his schedule. “I’m happy finishing second, third, fourth or wherever I finish at the end of the week.
“I don’t even know the permutations. It doesn’t bother me. What I’m going to do is go out there and try to do the same as every other week, which is play the best I can and give myself the best option of winning this week.
“I can’t control what other people do. Obviously both Tommy and Justin are playing well, so I’m not expecting them to finish 40th or 50th.
“I see a 2% chance of me winning the Race to Dubai. But I’m fine with it, I can live with it. It has been a great year and that’s not going to change.”
What is changing is Garcia’s equipment after his 15-year association with TaylorMade came to an end, with the Spaniard suggesting lucrative deals given to other players was a key factor.
Parent company adidas sold TaylorMade in May, the same month in which Rory McIlroy signed a 10- year, multi- million pound TaylorMade contract. Tiger Woods joined the company in January.
“I guess all companies change and the politics with TaylorMade have changed after leaving adidas,” added Garcia, who won his first major title at Augusta National in April. “We couldn’t come to an agreement. I understand that it’s difficult when you have so many top players, to keep all of them.”
Garcia will use Callaway equipment for the first time in competition this week and, although no deal has been signed, a formal agreement looks set to follow.
“I would say the most difficult thing to fit into your game would be the golf ball, when you have played with one for quite a while,” Garcia added. “With what we have been testing, the numbers have been good with the balls Callaway brought to me. Now it’s just a matter of trying it in tournament play.”