Sergio Garcia received an official warning from Augusta National for causing damage to a tee box and breaking his driver during the final round of the Masters tournament. Throughout the week, Garcia displayed a disappointed demeanor despite making the cut, failing to significantly impact the leaderboard. His frustration peaked on the second hole of the final round when his drive veered right into a bunker, leading him to violently slam his driver into the ground, causing damage to the course. Subsequently, he wrapped the broken driver around a nearby water cooler, resulting in the shaft snapping and leaving him without a driver for the remainder of the round.
Garcia, who was six over par at the time, faced consequences for his actions as Geoff Yang, head of the Masters competition committee, intervened a few holes later. The 46-year-old, a past winner of the Masters, was officially warned for his behavior. Garcia’s confidence was already low coming into the tournament due to a slow start to the golf season, and his dissatisfaction with his game was evident in his statements before the Masters.
Despite starting with a solid even-par round on Thursday, Garcia struggled to climb the leaderboard in the subsequent rounds. His performance led to a code of conduct warning, making him the second player to face such repercussions during the week. Another golfer, Bob MacIntyre, also faced disciplinary action for misconduct during his challenging opening round. MacIntyre, after a particularly difficult hole, showed his frustration by making an inappropriate gesture towards the 15th green.
Additionally, MacIntyre further exacerbated the situation by posting a controversial image on social media. It was later revealed that the golfer was dealing with a neck injury that almost forced him to withdraw from the tournament.