Sergio Garcia has apologised for his behaviour during the final round of the Masters, after he damaged the turf on the second hole and broke his driver in frustration. The incident prompted a warning from tournament officials under a new code-of-conduct policy introduced this year.
Garcia, the 2017 champion, hit a weak fade on the par-5 second hole, sending his ball towards a bunker. In anger, he slammed his driver into the ground, then broke the club against a wooden bench, leaving the head dangling. He did not repair the damage to the tee box.
Geoff Yang, chairman of the Masters competitions committee, issued a code-of-conduct warning to Garcia on the fourth tee. The policy, new to the Masters this year, carries penalties of two shots for a second violation and disqualification for a third.
In a social media post, Garcia said: 'I want to apologize for my actions Sunday at The Masters tournament. I respect and value everything that The Masters and Augusta National Golf Club is to golf. I regret the way I acted and it has no place in our game.'
Garcia initially refused to discuss the warning after his round, saying 'I'm not going to tell you' and 'Next question'. He later added: 'Just obviously not super proud of it, but sometimes it happens.' He finished 52nd among 54 players who made the cut.
This is not Garcia's first controversy; he was disqualified in 2019 at the Saudi International for damaging greens. The PGA Tour has been developing its code-of-conduct policy, with the Masters the first to implement it. The PGA Championship will follow next month.
