GolfPlayerMania

Anyone worth his two cents in the golfing community has heard about Sergio Garcia. The golfing prodigy, who started playing at the age of 3, won his first championship at 12. At 16, he became the youngest person to first make the cut at the 1995 Turespana Open Mediterranea, a prestigious European Tour Event.  In 1995, he went on to win the European Amateur, becoming the youngest player to do so. Three years later, he won the British Amateur. By 1999, Garcia was playing in the Masters Tournament.

His first claim to fame was competing against golfing legend Tiger Woods in a duel during the 1999 PGA Championship. Garcia eventually finished second, but the tournament cemented his reputation as one of the players to watch for. He followed up the win with the distinction of being the youngest player to ever play in the Ryder Cup. As far as his career is concerned, Garcia is a whirlwind. Two years after, he won his first PGA Tour Tournament at the 2001 MasterCard Colonial. That same year, he won the Buick Classic. The next year, he won the Mercedes Championships. In 2004, he conquered the EDS Byron Nelson Championship, and, for the second time, the Buick Classic. In May, 2008, he won against Paul Goydos in a playoff during The Players Championship on the PGA Golf Tour. All in all, he finished first in the PGA Tour an astounding 7 times! Truly, his golfing career is an amazing one!

Garcia’s personal life is just as interesting as his career. A bachelor who enjoys fast cars and the good life, he drives around in his Ferrari 360 Modena “quickly”, and also enjoys cruising in his Jaguar XJR. His love life is also quite interesting. He once dated tennis player Martina Hingis, and is currently dating Morgan-Leigh Norman, who is the daughter of yet another great golfing name, Greg Norman. At present, the two golfing greats are designing a new golf course in San Antonio. When not hard at work or even harder at play, he keeps the company of interesting names such as Diego Forlan, a Uruguayan football player, and young Colombian star golfer, Camilio Villegas.

When Garcia first started doing pro tours, one of the things that stood out about him was his unusual swing - a very unorthodox one with a noticeable “loop and lag”. He also had a ritual before he took a shot, where he would grip, release, and re-grip his hands on the club. This move of his was christened as a “waggle”. In later years, he modified his swing to make it more conventional, but he would always say, in response to critics: “My swing works for me, so why should I change it? I prefer to have a natural swing and play well rather than a perfect swing and not be able to play good.”

So yes, if you haven't heard of Sergio Garcia, then shame on you. You can't call yourself a golf enthusiast and not know this hard swinger who swings his way to stardom successfully and unusually.