Sergio Garcia has expressed remorse for his behavior during the final round of The Masters. Following a poor drive on the second hole, Garcia ripped up the turf and then damaged his driver by slamming it against a bench. In a social media post, Garcia stated, "I want to apologize for my actions at The Masters tournament. I have immense respect for The Masters and Augusta National Golf Club, and I regret my behavior, which has no place in golf.
My actions do not reflect the appreciation I have for The Masters, its patrons, officials, and fans worldwide." Garcia, the 2017 champion, received a code-of-conduct warning from Geoff Yang, chairman of The Masters competitions committee, on the fourth tee. This warning was part of a new conduct policy implemented at The Masters this year. After hitting a weak fade on the par-five second hole, Garcia's frustration escalated, leading to the damaging of his driver. When questioned about the incident, Garcia declined to comment on the details of the warning.
Instead, he acknowledged his behavior, saying, "It's not something I'm proud of, but it happens sometimes." Garcia's recent performance at The Masters has been underwhelming, with no top-10 finishes in the 29 majors since his 2017 win. His history of outbursts on the course includes damaging greens at the Saudi International in 2019 and other incidents. The PGA Tour has been developing its code-of-conduct policy, which The Masters was the first to implement.
A second violation during the tournament results in a two-shot penalty, and a third violation leads to disqualification.