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Sergio Garcia has been a staple of Europe’s Ryder Cup team since making his debut in 1999, but he won’t be on the roster when the tournament kicks off in Rome at the end of the month even though he went to great lengths in an attempt to secure a spot on the squad.
The 2010 edition of the Ryder Cup was previously the only one the Spaniard had missed, and while the 43-year-old Garcia may not be the golfer he once was, he has a tendency to step up in match play (as reflected by his all-time 25–13–7 record, which also makes him the winningest competitor in the history of the event).
However, he failed to make the final cut when Team Europe officially unveiled its lineup earlier this month, which was essentially a foregone conclusion stemming from Garcia’s decision to defect from the PGA Tour and join LIV Golf.
Garcia certainly didn’t do himself any favors by drawing the ire of the DP World Tour, as he was the only member of that organization who refused to pay the fines it levied against golfers who made the leap to LIV. While it appears he did have a change of heart, it was apparently too little, too late.
According to The Telegraph, Garcia managed to rack up £700,000 (around $867,000) in fines when everything was said and done, and while he offered to pay that sum (via his agent) in an attempt to get back on the Ryder Cup team, an unnamed source familiar with the matter shed some light on why it wasn’t in the cards:
“They suddenly came to us and said that not only would he pay the £100,000 but also all of the outstanding fines if he was allowed to play,
They also said they’d play in whatever events we wanted, apart from those that clashed with the remaining LIV tournaments.
But it was explained that, despite the ongoing peace talks, as he had resigned his membership, he is not eligible to join until next year. It was all a bit bizarre as that was made clear all along.”
The source also notes Garcia still hasn’t forked over the money, and while there’s a chance he could get back in the team’s good graces by the time the Ryder Cup heads to Bethpage Black in 2025, it’s not a stretch to wonder if he’s represented Europe for the last time.