It is no longer news that golfers Sergio Garcia and Tiger Woods are not best of friends but acquaintances after Garcia claimed the two of them ‘don’t like each other.”
However, the spicy little war of words between the two golfers at the Players Championship (TPC) which took place at the Sawgrass course may be over, but the controversy still breeds a life of its own.
On Saturday, Garcia had contended that Woods distracted him on his swing when his choice of a golf club drew a roar from the crowd. Woods, who was a distance from Garcia at the time, said he didn’t see Garcia and that course marshals had ‘told him he could precede.’
But two course marshals on the Sawgrass course disputed Woods’ account of the event that triggered the war of words between the two renowned golfers.
Gary Anderson, one of the marshals, told SI.com’s Michael Bamberger: “He didn’t ask us nothing. We didn’t say nothing. We’re told not to talk to the players.
A Naval Academy graduate who served in Vietnam, John North was the chief marshal for the first three holes and happened to be with Woods at the second hole. He has been a volunteer marshal for 30 years and according to the veteran:
“Nothing was said to us and we certainly said nothing to him,” North said. “I was disappointed to hear him (Woods) make those remarks. We’re there to help the players and enhance the experience of the fans. He was saying what was good for him. It lacked character.”
After watching Woods win the tournament, North said: “I hate to say it, but I was rooting for him. It tears me apart. But when he’s winning…”
