Sergio On Tiger: "He's not the nicest guy on tour.''

More from Sergio Garcia after completing the Players third round Sunday morning and learning he and Tiger would not be playing together in the afternoon.

Bob Harig reports:

"I'm not going to lie,'' Garcia said after completing the third round in a three-way tie for the lead with Woods and David Lingmerth. "He's not my favorite guy to play with. He's not the nicest guy on tour.''

Later, Garcia told the Golf Channel: "It's good for both of us. We don't enjoy each other's company. You don't have to be a rocket engineer to figure that out.''

Comments

[Ryan]

Neither are you, Sergio. Neither are you...

[Lip Out]

I have met Sergio and he couldn't have been a nicer, more friendly person. Not saying Tiger is a bad guy as I don't know, but Sergio is not.

[Sari]

Proof positive that the media is giddy and overplaying this: headline reads "Sergio Garcia rips Tiger Woods." "Rips??"

[JSS]

If you say anything bad about Tiger, the press will go crazy. He is the chosen one. Nobody wins from this, even though there probably is some truth to it.

[Carl Spachler]

Tiger was not the chosen one a couple years ago

[elf]

Tiger might not be the nicest guy in the world, Sergio can act like a spoiled brat, but both are generally good sports to play with (although Sergio's petulance has gotten on some nerves, and their is Butch's tiger gamesmanship claims). Time for them both to act like adults, stop the name calling and play golf.

[Amen]

Glad somebody in golf can call it like he sees it. Love him or not Tiger is no longer teflon man on the course or off. This kind of stuff might spur him on the course today? Will be an interesting Mothers Day!

[Mulligan]

Right on, JSS. And Sergio doesn't care if has friends in the American media. I like that.

[Pat]

Sergio just went up a couple of notches.

[dc]

That's why he has no majors. Whines about Padraig and Tiger. I was starting to like him after the Feherty interview until this weekend.

Stop trying to beat Tiger and just play the course.

[AV]

Wow - professional sportsman speaks his mind rather than hiding behind bland cliches. Props to Sergio.

[Robert Foster]

If Sergio wins this one, it will be massive. Taking on Tiger and his hoards of drunken buffoons and defenders and then winning? Big. So not pre-2009.
And we will have yet another confident convert going into majors adding to Tiger's growing list of headaches. I

[Jazzman]

The real problem with Sergio is not that he speaks his mind but that he does not use these slights real or imaginary as motivation for great performances, the great ones do - Jordan, Bird, Hogan, Magic, Tiger and Jack.

[Danny Boy]

Sergio better back up his words today with some good play. If not, it will just add another chapter to his petulant career and unfulfilled expectations from 1999.

[Chuck]

Tiger doesn't care. Sergio could not have found anybody to tangle with, who cared less.

Phil Mickelson might have been the only guy who was impressed; he liked the way that Sergio worked a product endorsement into the news. "Rocket Engineer-ier."

[REALLY]

Anybody who starts a comment with "I'm not going to lie"
Already is in toruble.

Throw your shoe at him Sergio.

[digsouth]

I'd like to see Maggart run the table, but his Sundays have not been very good.

Sergio saying Woods is not ''the nicest guy on tour''- WOW-stop the presses- I mean -really? He could have been honest and sid that TW is the biggest (fill in thew blank) on tour.

But he would also have to say that he is the biggest *European* crybaby on tour, it looks like Beljan get the prize for domestic whiner.

[The Pro from Dover]

Big deal. Who didn't already know that? Tw's father told everyone, "He will change the world". "He will be bigger than Gandhi!". So, growing up having your dad tell everyone that you are going to change the world and will be bigger than Mahatma Gandhi doesn't create a little personality dysfunction? TW is a great, great golfer. Why is Sergio a 'bad guy' for saying what he feels? And, with what a lot of people would agree. @ Chuck, you are correct, TW doesn't care. Doesn't care about anything but himself.

[My Bag is all Bridgestone]

I would rather get drunk with Sergio. TIger seems like a colossal bore.

[The Pro from Dover]

That's what Lindsey Vonn said !

[Carl Spachler]

In my circles gamesmanship is frowned upon

[Rule 33-7]

Tiger's ball starts left of left off the 14th tee yet he claims that it somehow stays right long enough to cross land before diving into the leftside pond?

Then he gets Casey Wittenberg to agree to this?

Rolfing's initial comments are that it "probably did not" cross the hazard that far up and he is being paid to watch the tournament.

Then Rolfing states that Tiger asked Wittenberg "did it cross up there?" That's a loaded question. Someone like Wittenberg is likely to say yes to that. A fair question would have been "Casey, where do you think that it crossed?'

Totally inconclusive from Rolfing's comments. And every camera angles indicates that it was nowhere near crossing land before splashing.

THIS IS A VERY LIBERAL AND A VERY SUSPICIOUS DROP.

Come on! Can't somebody stop this cheater?!?!?!

[DC]

Sergio is so dumb!! What is he thinking??

[DC]

Rule 33-7: quick, call it in and get him disqualified

[DC]

Camera caught tiger saying "f::$ yeah" after his tee shot on 18. Such ungentlemanly conduct and bad for the game. Someone call in a rules violation.

[Carter Redbush]

Can or will he be fined for that? Heard at one time that the tour hands out fines for "unsportsmanlike conduct", anyone know if there ia any truth to that?

[jgw]

Time for Sergio to quit the game again? Is there another club 'futbol' team he can try out for?

[drunken bufoon]

4 outta 7 is good, no?

[really]

Carter,
Players CAN be fined for saying something negative about another player.
Conduct unbecoming a professional

[CS]

Well. Sergio's shots on 17 are payback from the golf gods for speaking badly of Tiger... ONE DAY YOU WILL LEARN NOT TO MESS WITH THE COBRA OF THE BUNCH YOUNG MAN

[RLL]

@Jazzman: "The real problem with Sergio is not that he speaks his mind but that he does not use these slights real or imaginary as motivation for great performances, the great ones do - Jordan, Bird, Hogan, Magic, Tiger and Jack."

You got it exactly right, Jazzman. Sergio is always a man in search of both a way to lose and a reason outside himself for then losing. In one of the best post-round interviews that I haven't seen any reference to in the press, he actually said to a reporter, "Why do you ask me that? I am the victim here, not the one doing the thing."

Until he understands on a gut level that he IS "the one doing the thing," he will remain a loser who searches for the easy way out when the tension of competition rises.