Thursday, December 30, 1999
Tiger helping teen-age Spaniard with the
hazards of life on the tour
By PETE HERRERA
AP Sports Writer
SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. (AP) — Tiger Woods is helping Sergio
Garcia make the tricky transition from teen-ager to tour star.
While much has been made of their duel in the final round of
the PGA Championship this summer, both say they're rivals only
inside the ropes.
Woods is tutoring Garcia on life on the tour —things like
how to deal with the media, the travel and fans.
Garcia reminds Woods of his early days on the tour.
“I see a lot of myself in Sergio,” says Woods, who
was paired with the 19-year-old Spaniard in today's first round
of the $3.5 million Williams World Challenge. “Not only the
way he is, but the way he plays and the excitement that he brings
to the game. A lot of the things I did when I first turned pro,
he's doing right now.”
At this year's British Open, Woods sought out Garcia to offer
his help.
“He told me that if I wanted to ask him any questions
... that he was there for me,” Garcia said. “And, you
know, that's what I did.”
Woods says Garcia has done a good job of adapting to the tour.
“But unfortunately he's young, and people are going to
look for the mistakes more than most,” Woods said. “He's
in the public eye. Think back to when you were 19 or 20 years
old, some of the mistakes you made. Imagine that being global
in scope.
“That's what he has to go through. That's what I went
through. And I tried to help him out with some of the mistakes
I made.”
Helping an opponent, said Woods, is a big part of what makes
golf different from other sports.
“I don't know any other sport where you try and help out
your opponent,” he said. “I don't think that Michael
Jordan is going to go tell somebody, `Guard me like this. This
is what I like to do in the paint.'”
Woods says most players are willing to help each other with
the technical end of the game.
“If I see something in a golf swing ... I might suggest
to him, this is a little off. This is not where it was when you
were playing your best.”
But in the case of Garcia's swing, Woods said, there isn't
much of a need.
“I don't have to show him any shots. He can hit 'em all.”.
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