PEBBLE BEACH, Calif. — The mind games Sergio Garcia plays with himself never cease, and that’s what makes him one of the most compelling figures in golf.
Garcia, who has missed the cut in his past seven major championships and has only a tie for 21st and 37th in majors since winning his only career major at the 2017 Masters, shot a 2-under 69 in Thursday’s U.S. Open first round to stand just four shots out of the lead held by Justin Rose.
Then he promptly pronounced himself as feeling “horrible’’ about his game and said he hates his chances of winning this week.
“I don’t think I have much of a chance of winning this week the way I’m feeling,’’ Garcia said. “But the planets have aligned before. If they do again, and it helps me, then it’s a good thing.’’
Asked what his feelings were entering the week, Garcia said, “Horrible.’’
Asked to expand on that, he said, “I can say it louder, but not clearer.’’
“This game doesn’t feel good at the moment,’’ Garcia said. “It’s as simple as that. We go through some of those stretches, and unfortunately, I’m picking the wrong part of the year to go through one of those. But the only thing I can do is keep fighting and try to shoot the lowest I can shoot. And whatever that is, we will see.’’
Garcia does have some strong results this year, with a tie for second at the Zurich Classic and a tie for fourth at the Wells Fargo since late April.
“Obviously, I’m happy with my round [Thursday],’’ he said. “If you would have told me 2-under before I started, I would have taken it before you finished the phrase.’’
Asked if he has “lowered his expectations,’’ Garcia said, “Don’t get me wrong: It doesn’t mean that I’m not going to try when I’m out there. Just the way my game is feeling overall. It just doesn’t feel smooth.’’
Garcia said he “did hit some really nice shots,’’ but added, “I also hit some shots that looked like a 25 handicapper. It feels like when I’m missing at the moment, I’m not very much under control. What I did the best is I fought hard. I never gave up and tried to do some things right and capitalize on that, and I was able to do that for the most part.’’
