Sergio García (+1) has handed in a card of 71 strokes on the third day of the US Open. A result worth its weight in gold on a day of very difficult conditions at Pinehurst. The twist came naturally, without the USGA doing anything out of the ordinary, but it happened. Without forcing the machine, without pushing the greens to the limit, the wind simply appeared, fairways a little faster, more treacherous, more bushes in play, spicy flags, more complicated. Not even ten players managed to beat the course on the day and there are not even ten who are under in the tournament. The classification has been squeezed like a milk carton that is on its last legs.
Let this exposition of the scenario we have had today at No. 2 serve to understand why Sergio has gained a handful of places with his result of 71 strokes. He has placed twelfth, one step away from the top 10, one step away from his best result in a Major since his victory at the Augusta Masters in 2017.
And much of the good that he has achieved this Saturday he has done with superb golf, but today without a doubt the good attitude has weighed more. Because things were not going his way from the beginning. Without really playing badly he was +3 on the day in the first four holes. Three bogeys. It pointed to a long and gloomy day. One of those US Open days when you’re asking for the time from the third minute of the match.
But it was just at that moment when everything he told Ten Golf on Friday came to the fore. He knew how to put it on the ground, reset, trust in how well he is playing and wait patiently for things to change. He accepted the mistakes, like the putt from the 1st from the antegreen or the reading of the par putt on hole 4, as part of the game, even the bad bounces, which is even more difficult, as on the 3rd, after hitting a sovereign drive to the short par 4. In another time, Sergio would have shrunk and lamented his bad luck. Today he has taken it, lifted his head and trusted.
From hole 7 he has played exceptional golf. He has made a partial of two under par, a total result that only three players have reached today. You have to embroider golf to sign a figure of this type in this Pinehurst. And Sergio has done it. The strokes have fallen from his pockets and he had no qualms about sharing them with Ten Golf: “on the 7th I hit a shot, on the 8th too, although it was easier, on the 12th it was another shot, the 13th was incredible, an impressive 6 iron on hole 15, to the fade, with headwind, to the clouds, perfect, but it bounced on green, where I wanted, and it went behind… Today there were barely two palms on that green to bounce the ball if you wanted to leave it up. On the 16th I hit another great 4 iron, but it didn’t manage to get up to green… I played very well and I feel capable of making a good round tomorrow and finishing quite high”, assured the happy and convinced Borriol.
It is not usual for Sergio to revel in the good shots he has hit in a round. Much less if they have not ended well because of a bounce here or there. But we must convince ourselves, at least for now, that we are facing another version of Sergio García, a much more patient and enjoyable one, who appreciates the good he does, which is a lot, and who naturally accepts mistakes or the bad breaks of the goddess of fortune.
How far can Sergio go this Sunday? Well, for that you need a crystal ball. Certainly, with this renewed attitude and this excellent game, one has to think that he can finish very high. Winning is difficult, but there are other juicy objectives. One, for example, is to finish in the top ten to secure his presence at the US Open next year. It would be the 26th consecutive one.
