GREAT MASTERS story no one saw happening.
AUGUSTA, Ga. — This is why we watch sports — not just to see who wins or loses but for the unscripted and unexpected stories that only the competition can give us.
A 19-year-old old dazzles us with his talent and creativity, then disappoints us with his defeats, then maddens us with comments like, “I’ve come to the conclusion that I need to play for second or third place.” (We do not take surrender well, as a sports universe.)
Eighteen years later, the same guy, or at least a guy with the same name, shows up at Augusta National for the 74th major of his career and we think, “Really? You again?” Then he charges to the lead, loses it, bogeys the first two holes of the back nine, rebounds from adversity, wins over fans (Wait, what’s happening?), blows the biggest putt of his career (Aha! There he is!) and then, before the sun sets on a perfect Masters Sunday, he rewrites his entire career legacy.
This is why we watch sports — not to see Sergio Garcia bow out again but to watch him emerge as one of sports’ greatest and most unlikely stories.
“On the drive this morning to the course, I felt very calm, the calmest I ever felt on the Sunday of a major,” Garcia said. “Even after the two bogeys, I felt there were some holes I could go after. I felt I would have my chances.”
Garcia won his first major at the club that tormented him most, beating Justin Rose in a playoff that lasted one-hole. Maybe even more remarkable than the fact he was the lone competitor in the field to shoot all four rounds under par (71-69-70-69) was that he had galleries screaming for him with every shot. He showed passion and drive and the emotion of the same 19-year-old who did a mid-air scissor kick after a shot in the 1999 PGA Championship.
He finished second to Tiger Woods that year. But most believed the two would share the stage on golf’s immediate future. That never happened. But when Garcia dropped in a birdie putt on hole No. 18 in overtime, Woods was one of the first to Tweet congratulations: “Congrats @TheSergioGarcia. Well earned.”
Garcia has grown up. He credits his fiancee, Angela Akins, a former college golfer and Golf Channel reporter, with giving him needed support and maybe providing him with both perspective and a needed competitive spirit.
Asked after the victory if he was most proud of a shot or the demonstration of his character, he quickly said the latter. He referenced his tee shot on No. 13, which landed under some distant azaleas and became embedded in pine straw.
“In the past, I would’ve started going at my caddie,” he said. “Now I’m like, ‘If that’s what’s supposed to happen, let it happen. Let’s see if we can have a hell of finish. And if not, we’ll shake Justin’s hand when it’s over.’ “
Back in Spain, they celebrated. Jose Maria Olazabal, a two-time Masters winner, sent him a letter earlier in the week that read, “I’m not sharing my locker with anyone at the moment, but I hope to share it with you.”
In heaven, we can assume there was another celebration. Sunday would have been the 60th birthday of another Spaniard and two-time Masters winner, Seve Ballesteros.
“I’m sure he helped a little bit with some of those shots, some putts,” Garcia said. “It’s been an amazing week. I’m going to enjoy it for the rest of my life.”