Will 2009 Be Sergio Garcia's Year?

Several years ago, someone somewhere came up with the phrase “the best player to have never won a major.”

If you didn’t know any better you’d think that whoever thought up this phrase did so with the sole purpose of taking a dig at Sergio Garcia.

Maybe that was indeed his or her intention as the name Sergio Garcia is most often seen in any sentence containing that unwanted label of being “the best player to have never won a major.”

As of this very moment, Sergio Garcia might very well be the best player never to have won a major, but, that could all change in 2009.

Garcia’s recent win at the HSBC Championship, played in China, was his second win in three events and moved him into the second spot in the World Golf Rankings, right behind Tiger Woods. 

Garcia also won the 2008 Vardon Trophy for the lowest scoring average on the PGA Tour.

When Jack Nicklaus lost the 1960 US Open to a charging Arnold Palmer, Ben Hogan, who had played with Nicklaus during the final round, famously spoke of how Nicklaus could have run away with the tournament if only he knew how to win a golf tournament.

Well, something similar could be said of Sergio Garcia over the years. 

Garcia has been one of the best, if not the best ball-striker on tour for quite some time yet he has never been able to get it done in the majors. 

However, in 2008 Garcia has finally given us some indication that he is improving upon two aspects of his game that had previously played key roles in his inability to win a major championship.

First, Garcia has improved upon a putting stroke that his been a thorn in his side for the better part of his career, particularly in the most pressure packed situations.

Over the years he has tried virtually every brand of putter on the market as well as a belly putter but all to no avail.

Garcia missed a five-foot putt to win the 2007 British Open which sent him to a sudden death playoff where he eventually lost to Padraig Harrington. 

He was also in a great position to win his first major at the 2008 PGA Championship but a combination of missing a few big putts down the stretch along with Padraig Harrington’s, otherworldly putting display cost him yet another major championship. 

Garcia is highly gifted in virtually every aspect of the game, other than putting.  

Unfortunately for Garcia, being a strong putter is a pre-requisite for winning a major championship.

During the 2008 season, under the tutelage of renowned short game guru Stan Utley, Garcia appears to have finally found a putting stroke that is able to hold steady in the face of the most intense pressure.

Garcia sunk several big putts down the stretch on his way to winning the Player Championship, widely thought of as golf’s fifth major. 

Although he lost in a sudden death playoff at both the Barclays and the Tour Championship, he again sunk several vitally important putts down the stretch just to finish in a tie for the lead.

Another aspect of Garcia’s game that has shown a marked improvement in 2008 is his level of maturity both on and off the golf course.

Even as recent as 2007 Garcia would be quick to point the blame for not winning onto anyone or anything else other than himself.  The players in front of him were playing too slow, the greens were too marked-up to roll a decent putt, the pin placements were unfair or he was simply unlucky.

It is almost as if Garcia has been recovering from a horrific tragedy, that tragedy being his inability to win a major championship.

First, Garcia seemed very angry about the situation.

Next, Garcia was in denial, dispersing the blame onto every one and every thing else other than himself.

However, in 2008 we saw a vastly different, more mature Sergio Garcia. 

In several post round interviews we finally saw him begin to take some responsibility for not getting the job done down the stretch.

Garcia’s worst moments of the 2008 season were his loss to a surging Padraig Harrington at the PGA Championship and his shocking 5&4 defeat at the hands of Anthony Kim during his Sunday singles match at the Ryder Cup. 

After each of these gut-wrenching defeats we saw a different Sergio Garcia.

He was cordial in giving credit to his competition and even shouldered much of the blame for these losses. 

In 2008, it appears that Garcia has finally moved on to the acceptance stage.

He has accepted the fact that he and only he is responsible for winning or loosing a major and that until he masters his putting stroke and mental game, particularly when the pressure is on, a major championship will remain out of reach.

Upon reaching the acceptance stage one is finally in a position to move forward, and in Garcia’s case, he is finally in an excellent position both physically and mentally to win his fist major. 

In 2009, Sergio Garcia might just pass on to someone else the undistinguished label of being “the best player to have never won a major.”