Sergio Garcia received an official warning from Augusta National following his actions that led to damage to a tee box and the breaking of his driver during the final round of the Masters tournament.
Throughout the week, Garcia displayed a despondent attitude, despite making the cut, failing to significantly impact the leaderboard. His frustration escalated at the second hole on Sunday when he veered his drive to the right, landing in a bunker on the par-five.
At six over par, Garcia, visibly upset with his shot, aggressively slammed his driver into the ground twice, tearing up a piece of turf. He then proceeded to wrap the driver shaft around a nearby water cooler, causing it to snap, leaving the club head barely attached. Consequently, he had to finish the round without a driver, reaching the 10th hole at two over par for the day and seven over for the tournament.
Viewers expressed disappointment over Garcia’s behavior on the course, with some demanding disciplinary action from Augusta National. Their wishes were granted when Geoff Yang, the head of the Masters competition committee, approached Garcia a few holes later to issue an official code of conduct warning to the 46-year-old former tournament winner.
Garcia, who arrived at Augusta National with self-doubt after a slow start to the golf season, voiced his dissatisfaction with his game on Monday, stating, “Not super happy at the moment, but we’re working. We’ll see what happens throughout the week. Yeah, at the moment I’m not feeling amazing.”
While Garcia began the tournament with an even-par round on Thursday under challenging conditions, he failed to make significant progress in the second round, carding a 75 that enabled him to make the cut.
In a separate incident, Bob MacIntyre also faced code of conduct scrutiny after losing his composure during a disastrous opening round, flashing a gesture on the course. MacIntyre further risked aggravating the situation by posting an image on social media depicting himself as a Masters gnome with a similar gesture.
It was later revealed that MacIntyre, a two-time Ryder Cup champion, was coping with a neck injury that nearly forced him to withdraw from the tournament.