Sergio Garcia's temper has landed him with what is believed to be a £5,000 fine, one of the heftiest ever handed out by the European Tour.
The Spanish Ryder Cup star reacted angrily to being penalised two strokes by the tour's chief referee John Paramor for a wrong drop at the Greg Norman Holden International in Sydney three months ago.
Garcia, two ahead at the time, was clearly furious. He argued with Paramor about the ambiguity of the rule and as they parted he twice hit a tree with a club and then hit a buggy.
Hardly able to contain his anger he then said: "Hopefully, even with John Paramor's rules and everything, I will be able to win the tournament." When he lost a play-off to Australian teenager Aaron Baddeley he said: "Somebody didn't want me to win and he did it."
The rumoured £5,000 fine is the same as given to Ronan Rafferty in 1991 for walking out of the US Open in mid-round - a record amount at the time.
A tour statement issued yesterday said Garcia had been fined "an appropriate sum for a serious breach of the code of behaviour." In addition, Garcia is being requested to attend a meeting with representatives of the tournament committee the next time he plays in Europe.
