Just a few holes into his first round at the Wells Fargo Championship on Thursday afternoon, Sergio Garcia found himself in a tough spot.
After driving a ball out of bounds, Garcia located the ball, but a rules official said that he ran out of time. As a result, he was forced to take a stroke penalty.
Following the controversial ruling, Garcia made his frustration known. “A couple more weeks, and I won’t have to deal with you anymore,” he said to the PGA Tour official.
Garcia has long been rumored as one of the golfers who could be joining the new Saudi-backed golf league. A few hours after his comments, golf analyst Bandel Chamblee had a blunt message for him.
“Sergio’s comment today, ‘I can’t wait to leave this tour,’ presumably to the Saudi backed tour, shows a glaring ignorance to the murderous and incarcerating intolerance in SA perpetrated by MBS to anyone who disagrees with him,” Chamblee said. “You’re free to leave Sergio, unlike dissidents in SA.”
Although controversial, the league has promised significant purses for the game’s top players and a more relaxed schedule as well.
Big names like Phil Mickelson and Bubba Watson are rumored to be joining the new tour. Sergio seems to be on the way out of the PGA Tour as well.