|
PONTE VEDRA BEACH, Fla. Malcolm Jenkins . -- Even without Tiger Woods around, Sergio Garcia couldnt avoid reminders of a week to forget at The Players Championship. The 17th hole is where Garcia last year lost the battle, along with the war of words. After two days of verbal sparring with Woods, the Spaniard put two balls in the water to make quadruple bogey, and he put another in the water on the 18th for good measure. Garcia already was 4 under on Thursday when he came to the par-3 17th with an island green. "It did cross my mind. Im not going to lie to you," Garcia said. "I was trying to be positive. Its a new year -- lets improve on it. I pulled it a little bit there, but it was an OK shot. I was able to do much better there, and much better on 18, so I was very happy to see that." Garcia was six shots better than the last time he played those holes. He wound up with a 5-under 67 and was four shots behind leader Martin Kaymer, a good start for a past champion who has shown he can manage his way around the Stadium Course. As for those other memories? Garcia has put those behind him. Much like his golf shots, hes looking forward. Woods won The Players last year in a tournament marked by a weekend of squabbling with Garcia -- such public feuds are rare in golf -- that ended badly a few weeks later in London when Garcia made a racially insensitive comment about Woods while trying to be funny. It started in the third round, when Garcia blamed Woods for pulling fairway metal from his bag on a par 5 to stir up the gallery just as Garcia was trying to play his shot. Video doesnt support that sequence of events, but it set off a weekend of bickering -- and Woods got the last word by winning. "I think its over. I think its passed," Garcia said. "I didnt think I was a villain, but I think that weve all moved ahead of that. I certainly have. Im just looking forward to now and hopefully whats coming soon." Garcia says he is in a happier place, and it shows. He conducted a clinic for kids on Wednesday, and he is at his best in the presence of children. He played beautifully on Thursday, losing momentum with one bogey on his 14th hole, but no less satisfied with a 67. Even so, he conceded his battle with Woods last year unsettled him. He was at an awards banquet in London when asked if he would invite Woods over to dinner during the U.S. Open. "We will serve fried chicken," Garcia replied. He apologized twice, though it didnt quell the criticism that followed him the rest of the summer. Garcia spoke of the ups and downs in his career, of trying to play good golf when he feels miserable. Garcia went into a deep funk when longtime girlfriend Morgan Leigh Norman left him. He said after a poor third round in the 2012 Masters that he did not have the game to win a major. "You go through ups and downs in your life, in your career," Garcia said. "And Ive had really, really good times; really, really happy times. And then Ive had times that were a little bit more down. I think it happens to all of us. Youve got to try to enjoy those good times as much as possible and learn from the tough ones and hopefully make them as short as possible. I think at the end of the day, thats all you can really do." He said the last four years have been "pretty good," but not always. "I dont know, probably (what) comes to mind maybe last year is when everything went on with the little problem with Tiger," he said. "I think that was tough." Lately, he is on an upward swing. Garcia won in Thailand late last year. He won in Qatar at the start of this year. He is No. 9 in the world. He is thinking positively. And it probably doesnt hurt that Woods is sidelined indefinitely while recovering from back surgery. And yes, at 34, he believes hes good enough to win a major. "I think that when Im on, I can definitely win anywhere," he said. "I think Ive proven that. Its just a matter of getting that week where you feel good, where you feel comfortable, where things go your way, where everything feels relaxed, everything feels at ease and you manage to do things the way you know how to do them. Im still waiting for that particular week." LeSean McCoy . Exactly how many games Locker misses depends on how quickly he recovers. "If anyones going to get back quick, its him," Munchak said Tuesday night during his weekly radio show on 104. Reggie White Jersey . -- The Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins erupted for five goals in the third period to beat the St.GENEVA - Qatar has been urged at the United Nations to abolish the sponsorship system tying migrant workers to employers. Delegates at a U.N. Human Rights Council panel reviewing Qatars record on Wednesday repeatedly raised concerns about exploitation of workers in construction and domestic households. Several of 84 states speaking in the session linked Qatar hosting the 2022 World Cup with the need to reform its laws. "There are widespread reports of violations of the rights of migrant workers, especially in the context of preparations for the 2022 FIFA World Cup," the Ireland delegation said in a statement. Recommendations, which are not binding, included scrapping exit visas which can prevent immigrant workers leaving, and giving legal protection against what Belgium said was "persistence of violence against women and girls." Qatars assistant foreign minister, Sheik Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al-Thani, said there had been "some helpful recommendations from different countries." "We recognize that there are certain issues and challenges we are facing about the migrant workers," the minister told The Associated Press after the three-hour meeting. "We think the World Cup is a catalyst for us to help us accelerate our performance." Qatari authorities are preparing to announce some changes within weeks, after a review of their labour laws. "We will come, I think, very soon within the current month with an overall work program," Sheik Mohammed said. The minister opened the panel meeting outlining progress made enacting recommendations — including measures to combat human trafficking and protect women and children from domestic violence — since a previous four-yearly review in 2010. The International Trade Union Confederation and rights groups have criticized Qatar for slow adoption of laws to protect non-Qatari nationals, and failure to enforce existing laws properly. With the World Cup expected to kick off in November 2022, Qatar faces two further U.N. human rights reviews before matches start. Zach Ertz. Spain led calls on Wednesday to "strike from the books" the "kafala" sponsorship system which gives employers veto power over workers leaving their job or going home. The Netherlands called for Qatar to make adequate labour conditions "an important criterion for granting building contracts" and to blacklist contractors who violated rules. The Qatari minister called for understanding of the emirates issues handling an influx of foreign workers — comprising 85 per cent of a resident population of around 2 million — during its rapid growth. "There are some challenges with the current laws," Sheik Mohammed acknowledged. "In order to have partners in this development, we need the flow of ex-pat workers who are coming to work for us and helping us." Still, many U.N. member states on Wednesday expressed concern for migrant domestic staff who will be required in Qatari households after the construction boom. Belgium urged Qatar to assure women they could complain "without fear of reprisal or harassment" by their employers. Spain noted that marital rape is not a crime in Qatar, and the Czech Republic recommended criminalizing all violence against women. "We are encouraging them if there is any problem to report it and we have put the mechanisms in place," the Qatari minister told the AP. "This is a freedom which is granted by the government." France led recommendations that Qatari women who married foreign men be allowed to pass on their nationality to their children. Amid widespread requests to ensure freedom of expression and protest in Qatar, the United States recommended that the government release all prisoners of conscience including poet Muhammad ibn al-Dheeb al-Ajami. He is serving a 15-year jail term for writing verses judged offensive to the former Emir. A report reviewing Qatars progress will be adopted Friday, and is scheduled to be considered at a session of the 47-nation Human Rights Council in September. ' ' ' |
