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Sergio Garcia’s par-5 15th hole during the opening round of the Masters is one that will haunt him for a long time to come. The reigning Masters champion scored a 13 on the hole (tied for the most in Masters history) after hitting five balls in a row in the drink, ending any possibility of a repeat performance. At the time of me writing this, Garcia is currently tied for 77th in the field.
Four of Sergio Garcia’s five shots into the water. pic.twitter.com/NzAubcBZ7c
— Nick Bromberg (@NickBromberg) April 5, 2018
After Sergio shot himself out of the competition early, Golf Channel anchor Rich Lerner made a joke about Sergio naming his next child after the 13th hole, commonly known as Firethorn.
Sergio won't be naming his next kid Firethorn.
— Rich Lerner (@RichLernerGC) April 5, 2018
In February, Sergio named his newborn daughter Azalea, an ode to the flower that the Augusta National Golf Club has designated as the trademark of the par-5 13th hole. This also happened to be the hole that Garcia made an essential par on to catapult him to a playoff win and his first ever major win to beat Justin Rose at the Masters last year.
Sergio failed to take the light-hearted jab in stride, calling Lerner ‘funny man’ and bringing up that time he won the green jacket.
What happened on 15 @TheMasters yesterday was unfortunate for me and it hurt but I tried to handle it like a Masters Champion should. That same hole gave me that green jacket last year so we might end up naming our next kid Firethorn after all, funny man!😉 https://t.co/vMIDTMGhrf
— Sergio Garcia (@TheSergioGarcia) April 6, 2018
His wife turned the defensiveness up a notch.
Hey @RichLernerGC, the next time you decide to tweet about my future child why don’t you use your brain and not do it? Don’t be an idiot. @GolfChannel https://t.co/Y4kHNZjDjv
— Angela Garcia (@TheAngelaAkins) April 5, 2018
Please don’t apologize, Rich.
Rich!
Shit.
My apologies to Angela and Sergio for my poorly timed attempt to lighten the mood. Missed the mark with a flippant comment. No ill intent.
— Rich Lerner (@RichLernerGC) April 6, 2018
Chill, Angela. Laugh a little. You’re still rich.
Thank you for your apology, @RichLernerGC. I always appreciate a good sense of humor and a good joke, but when you reference a player’s family it’s not appropriate. If people really thought about it they might agree. All good and we can move on. https://t.co/sSxjwUnevu
— Angela Garcia (@TheAngelaAkins) April 6, 2018