Sergio Garcia: a Valencian Master

On 10th April 2017, Valencian golfer Sergio Garcia received the prestigious green jacket, having won the Masters tournament at the Augusta National Golf Club for the first time.

Sergio García was born in Borriol, near Castellón, Valencia, on January 9th, 1980.

He started playing golf at the tender age of 3 years old under the supervision of Víctor García, his father. Víctor had worked as a caddie at Club de Campo de Madrid and then became a professional golf player. After that, he coached at Club de Campo del Mediterraneo (Borriol). Sergio’s mother, Consuelo managed the club’s pro-shop.

When he was 15 years old he made it to a European Tour event and only three years later he turned pro.

He qualified for the 1999 Ryder Cup after only a few months of competition.

He has been in the OWGR top ten for more than a decade, winning tournaments everywhere (Europe, United States, Africa, Asia…) and was a member of the European Ryder Cup team from 1999 until 2012 (excepting 2010).

Sergio also enjoys  football whenever he has some spare time. He has been both President and player of Borriol CF, a Third Division team in the Spanish football league.

The Sergio Garcia Foundation was founded in 2002 in Spain and 2005 in Switzerland “for the purpose of contributing to he social inclusion of economically deprived children and youth, through social assistance benefits and the practice of sport as a free-time activity.“

In 2003, the Sergio Garcia Foundation and the Deporte y Desafío Foundation came together with the objective of introducing adaptive golf in Spain, with the support and the supervision of the Spanish Golf Federation. They developed together a twofold program aimed at making golf accessible to people with disabilities, thus helping them to be socially integrated. The second aim was to promote adaptive golf throughout the whole of Spain by means of specific training courses directed to golf teaching professionals interested in learning the techniques that enable them to cope with the various disabilities. These professionals ensure the continuity of the initiative.

The Sergio Garcia Foundation supports a large variety of NGOs and humanitarian associations. The Foundations have donated over $US2 million since their inception.