Getty Image / Lionel Ng
Former Masters champion, Ryder Cup legend, and LIV Golf’s Fireballs GC captain Sergio Garcia missed out on qualifying for the 2024 US Open in brutal fashion this week after a rollercoaster of events down the stretch.
Sergio came out and fired off a first round 66 that put him in prime contention to qualify for the US Open at Pinehurst which is less than a month away. But Sergio Garcia then shot a 73 in his second round after a double bogey on the par-5 16th hole which was the direct result of him hitting a shot in the drink. That double sent him to a playoff…
With the double bogey on 16 fresh in his memory, Sergio Garcia was then thrust into a 7-man playoff for the final 6 US Open spots awarded at the Dallas Athletic Club’s US Open final qualifying event. Sergio Garcia hasn’t missed a US Open since 1999, surely he could finish top 6 in a 7-man playoff, right? Well, you already know the answer.
On the first hole of the 7-man playoff, Sergio bogeyed and was out of contention as he was the only man of the 7 competitors in the playoff to bogey the hole:
BREAKING:
Sergio with the first group of the playoff has BOGEYED.
Brandon Wu birdied and McGowan made a par.
Now Sergio must wait to see if someone will bogey or worse or he will be OUT of the US Open pic.twitter.com/QCOt2kIe2z
— Will Driver (@williamdriver34) May 21, 2024
There is still a chance that Sergio Garcia makes the US Open, albeit a small one. By finishing 7th in the 7-man playoff, the Spaniard is now the 1st alternate for Pinehurst. So if any of the qualifiers need to pull out for any unexpected reasons then Sergio will get the call first.
In Sergio’s defense it really was a stacked field at the Dallas Athletic Club’s US Open Final Qualifying event. Nico Echavarria shot 67-68 for the top spot. 2018 Open Championship winner Franciso Molinari fired off 68-70.
The event was one of 13 final US Open qualifying events held worldwide where the competitors play two rounds on teh same day. The other two events were held in England and Japan on Monday. With less than a month until the US Open, there are still 10 final qualifying events to be held and those 10 will take place on June 3rd.