Sergio has mojo back
Bjorn’s Ryder confidence helps Spaniard win again
WHEN Sergio Garcia was toasting his first win of the season he should have raised a glass to Thomas Bjorn.
For he now owes the European Ryder Cup captain a debt of thanks for more than just the Ryder Cup wild card pick he bravely handed the Spaniard in the face of widespread criticism.
Rejuvenated by the famous passion that pulsates through Garcia whenever the big clash with the USA comes around, he is still clearly running on adrenalin three weeks on from that victory in Paris.
Yesterday’s triumph at the rain-delayed Andalucia Valderrama Masters by four shots was more than just Garcia’s first victory of a largely forgettable 2018, more than a successful defence of the title.
This was also a hugely significant victory in the sense of a guy who has found his mojo again after a period in the doldrums when Bjorn suspected he had lost his desire and fervour for practice in the 12 months since his career-defining Major breakthrough triumph at the 2017 US Masters.
Bjorn needed the European stalwart on his team for Paris. Not just for his unique bubbly contribution to the team room but in more practical terms he needed picks with an arrow-straight accuracy off the tee on this demanding golf course.
So regardless of his form, having missed the cut in all four Majors, no matter how much flak he knew was coming his way for making him one of his four picks, he was always going to give Sergio the platform to prove the doubters wrong.
And he revealed the Monday morning after their win he knew the power of the Ryder Cup would wake Sergio from his slump and relight the fire in his belly
Bjorn said: “I called him one day and I said, ‘If I play you four times how many points are you going to give me?’ And he said three.
“That was before I selected him. But I knew I wanted him on the team so I was pushing him.
“I kept pushing him to make him feel like he needed to do the work. He needed to be aware this was not an easy choice for me – and publicly I’ve been honest that it wasn’t an easy choice.
“I wanted him on the team for everything he brings but there are guys who played better and that made it difficult.
“But in the end we put a plan together and he outlined what he was going to do to prepare himself and he stuck to that plan and he came here and delivered.”
Maybe Ian Poulter should hand over the postbox costume he was given by a fan that Sunday because almost a month on it’s Garcia who continues to deliver.
Boosted by his place in the record books as Europe’s leading all-time Ryder Cup points scorer, Garcia could look back on this magic month of October as a turning point in his career.
If he can build on this through the European Tour’s money-spinning Final Series and take that momentum into next year, perhaps another Major title becomes a realistic target.
There’s a lot of golf to be played between now and the Masters but at least Garcia’s back to playing to the high standards that had deserted him until the Ryder Cup reminded him who he is.