Major Champion Sergio Garcia is hoping to create further Spanish history during the 100th edition of the KLM Open in Amsterdam.
The 2017 Masters Tournament winner makes his debut at The International this week and the 39-year-old is hoping to join the illustrious list of past Spanish champions which includes the late Seve Ballesteros, José María Olazábal, Miguel Ángel Jiménez and Gonzalo Fernández-Castaño.
The 15-time European Tour winner sits in 23rd place in the 2019 Race to Dubai Rankings Presented by Rolex and Garcia has set his target of improving his position at his maiden KLM Open.
Fellow Major winner Patrick Reed believes his game is exactly where it needs to be as he looks to challenge for his first victory on European soil.
The 2018 Masters Champion sits 53rd in the 2019 Race to Dubai Rankings following a tied 36th result in last week’s Porsche European Open and the 29-year-old is excited for his debut in the Netherlands with high hopes of being in the mix during a busy period in his worldwide calendar.
Player Quotes
Sergio Garcia: “It is a country that I have never played in as a professional, and I played in Italy a couple of years ago for the first time as a pro, so I like to go to new places. It was extra special this week being 100 years and with the connection to Seve, so it fitted nicely into the schedule.
“There is a lot of Spanish history with the event and hopefully we will have a good solid week and will try and have a good chance of winning on Sunday. If I have a good week to move up the Race to Dubai Rankings that would be a nice thing to do, so it is one of the goals.
“I feel pretty good. I played pretty well for the most part in Crans, so hopefully we can keep going on that same line and keep the momentum going.
“I played the front nine holes yesterday and it’s a nice course, it’s in good shape. It has a kind of links feel to it, with big greens and a lot of movement, so the course looks really nice. You have to be very accurate off the tee because otherwise you will get stuck in the high rough and now being wet, it will be a bit tougher.”
Patrick Reed: “I feel good. The golf course was a lot of fun the past two days and the variant is unbelievable so to be able to experience the various golf courses is fun, which is good for the game and good for me.
“It’s trending. I feel like I have been playing some solid golf here recently and I feel that this year has been a big learning experience for me after winning the previous year. That being said, I feel that’s the game’s where it needs to be, continue to grind and continue to go out there and take it day by day and try and have chances to win on Sunday.
“It’s good. A lot of blind shots but at the same time it makes you have to really think, you have to do everything out there. Think of everything from irons to driver off every tee, you have to work the ball both ways, the greens are absolutely perfect shape – that’s the biggest thing. All of us love it when the greens are perfect. The greens make it easier to makes putts at the same time.”
