Chicago Preview: Captain Garcia relishing opportunity to finish inside top three

News
Written by
Joy Chakravarty, LIV Golf correspondent
Sep 13 2024
- 4 min
Fireballs Chicago preview STORY image

BOLINGBROOK, IL - It’s going to be an action-packed week for Fireballs GC in LIV Golf Chicago, the last tournament of regular season before next week’s Team Championship in Dallas.

Captain Sergio Garcia, fourth in the season-long Individual Standings, has a chance to climb up one spot and get into the Bonus Pool.

David Puig, the youngest member of the all Spanish-speaking team, is 25th in the rankings and would dearly love to finish inside the Lock Zone of Top 24 players.

As a team, Fireballs (112.83 points) are in 6th place, and even if they win, they will not be able to surpass Ripper GC (151 points).

The equation for Garcia is simple. He is 8 points behind Legion XIII’s Tyrrell Hatton, and 6.39 points ahead of No. 5 Louis Oosthuizen. The Spaniard will have to finish well inside the Top 10 to have any chance of making the move up.

Puig, with 38.58 points, is nearly 9.5 points behind the 24th ranked Brendan Steele, so he too needs at least a Top 10 finish to make up for the deficit.

Captain Garcia had a simple solution to all the above. “Play good golf and get a W. We will see where we stand after that,” he said on the eve of LIV Golf Chicago at Bolingbrook Golf Club.

Garcia said getting into the Top Three was definitely in his mind this week.

“Of course, I am aware of that. I think it’s a great thought to have in your mind. It’s much better than if I was 10th and I had no chance of finishing in the Top Three,” said Garcia, winner of this year’s LIV Golf Andalucia and twice runner-up after losing in playoffs.

“It shows that you have had a good, consistent season, and I’d love to make it count in the last week of the regular season.

“At the end of the day, it's the same thing that we do every week - I just have to go out and play well, like I’ve been playing all year, and give myself the best possibility and see what happens.

“Even if I finish in the Top 5, it would depend on how Tyrrell finishes. The only way I can depend on myself is if I win, which would make it a done deal. If he plays better than me, he wins.”

By virtue of being in the Open Zone (Rank 25-48), Puig is in no danger of losing his place in the 2025 season of LIV Golf, but finishing inside the Lock Zone would be a nice way to end a consistent season, which included a tied 3rd finish in Houston, his career-best result on LIV Golf.

Garcia said from a Fireballs perspective, it did not matter where Puig finished, because they were convinced of the immense potential of the 22-year-old, who qualified for this year’s PGA Championship, the US Open, as well as the Open Championship and represented Spain in the Paris Olympics alongside Jon Rahm.

“I mean for me, it doesn’t really matter, because I know his potential. I know how good he is and the kind of player and person that he is. So I’m not worried about that,” Garcia explained.

“I think for him, personally, probably it would be nice if he can finish in the top 24, top 20. I know that it will mean a lot to him. But when it comes down to the Fireballs, there’s no issue at all.”

The groups for Friday’s opening round have been decided based on the season’s standings, which means Garcia will tee off from the 2nd hole at 12:15 pm local time.

Hong Kong champion Abraham Ancer has been paired with Paul Casey and Taylor Gooch and will start his campaign on Hole 5, while Puig is out with Cameron Triangle and Graeme McDowell from Hole 16. Eugenio Chacarra is off Hole 10 with Caleb Suratt and Cleeks captain Martin Kaymer.