Watch: Sergio Garcia delighted with strong performance in Round 1 at LIV Andalucia

Spanish golfer Sergio Garcia was interviewed after his participation in the first round of the LIV Golf Andalucia tournament. He finished the round in T7 with a score of -1, a result with which he was happy, although not entirely pleased.

From the Real Club Valderrama in Cadiz, Spain, home of the tournament, Garcia highlighted that it was a difficult competition. He said:

"There was a grind out there."

These were Garcia's words, posted on the social media accounts of the LIV Golf circuit:

"I didn't feel like I play well, I just grinded out very well. Obviously chipped very nicely, i got some up and downs and made a couple of nice putts. So, there was a grind out there and I was happy to see red numbers next to my name at the end of the day."

Sergio Garcia is practically playing the tournament as a local due to his status as Spaniard. He hails from Borriol, in the province of Castellon, about 530 miles from where LIV Golf Andalucia is being played.

In fact, before the start of the tournament, Garcia stated that the Valderrama course is his favorite in the world since he first played there when he was around 13 years old.

This is part of what he said, according to the LIV Golf news service:

"From the beginning, from the first time I played. Just amazing shape. It was love at first shot. I love Valderrama. It’s my favorite golf course in the world ... it makes you think, and it makes you hit every club in the bag. That's something I think good courses do."

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Sergio Garcia at the LIV Golf Valderrama and more

Sergio Garcia, 43, had a solid performance in the first round of the LIV Golf Valderrama. He made three birdies and two bogeys to close with -1. This was enough for him to start this Saturday in T7, tied with seven other players, three strokes behind the leaders.

With knowledge of the course, Garcia took care of the toughest holes. Before the event, he had declared that, in his opinion, the most difficult hole at Valderrama is the 7th. There, he made par.

Garcia also made par or birdie on all the par 3 holes (3rd, 6th, 12th and 15th), which he had described as "great". He also made par on his favorite hole (4th).

Sergio Garcia teeing off at the 7th hole of the LIV Golf - Andalucia (Image via Getty).

Sergio Garcia is the captain and star of the Fireballs GC team of the LIV Golf circuit, whose members (Garcia himself, Eugenio Chacarra, Abraham Ancer and Carlos Ortiz) are all native Spanish speakers. The team is in sixth place in the 2023 season. In the individual case of Garcia, he is ranked 14th with 47 points.

Garcia's best result of the season was a runner-up finish at the Singapore tournament.