Sergio Garcia learns Open Championship fate at LIV Golf Dallas

Did the gamble pay off for Sergio Garcia in his bid to tee up at Royal Portrush?

What a rollercoaster it’s been for Sergio Garcia.

After missing a three-foot putt at the Asian Tour’s International Series event in Macau in March that would have booked his Open return, Garcia has thrown himself into getting in via the LIV Golf standings.

With The R&A opening up one spot to any player in the top five who is otherwise not exempt, the Spaniard headed to Dallas in fourth and full of confidence. So much so, in fact, that he decided to skip Tuesday’s Final Qualifying.

It was a gutsy move. Despite a win in Hong Kong and a 3rd-place finish in Miami, Garcia has not scored a single point in his last three events as the likes of Lucas Herbert and Fireballs teammate David Puig looked to snatch that coveted Open spot from him.

A tie for 25th at Maridoe on Sunday left him pointless again – but his early season form was just enough to scrape an invite to the 153rd playing of golf’s oldest major.

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Garcia had competed for the Claret Jug for 24 straight years from 1998 to 2022 before his move to LIV Golf saw him plummet down the world rankings and out of those automatic qualification spots. This will be his 26th appearance at what he calls his “favorite major”.

“It’s going to be my second time playing at Royal Portrush, and it’s obviously nice,” Garcia said as he processed the news in Dallas.

“It’s one of the goals that you have at the beginning of the year, to try to play as many majors as you can with the limitations that we get.

“I didn’t help myself very much the last three months, but I’m glad that I got enough work done in the first third of the year, I guess, in the first part of the season.

“I’m excited about it, and hopefully I’ll play well.”

Next target: a return to the Ryder Cup.