Sergio socks it to rival with shoeless shot
Defending Masters champion Sergio Garcia has left the golfing world in awe with a remarkable shoeless shot in the World Golf Championships.
The Spaniard confounded callers in Texas on Wednesday (Thursday AEDT) when he stepped up to his wayward drive at the par-5 12th hole at the Austin Country Club - minus his shoes.
"Why, why, why, has he got metal spikes?" Nick Faldo said in commentary.
"This has got to be even tougher taking his shoes off."
Faldo just couldn't get his head around Garcia's approach, even going as far as answering his own rhetorical question.
"When was the last time you hit shoeless off a cart path? Never."
However, as he's done so many times in the past, Garcia proved the doubters wrong by striking an incredible approach that landed on the fringe off the green - setting himself up for an improbable birdie.
"That is phenomenal, what a great golf shot," Faldo enthused as the ball stopped metres away from the flag.
Garcia went on to halve the hole with opponent Shubhankar Sharma, before earning a one-up win against the Indian in the match play format.
Jason Day and Cameron Smith got the Australian contingent off to a fine start midway through day one at the World Golf Championships-Match Play in Texas.
Smith, making his WGC-Match Play debut, notched a two-up victory against tough opponent Patrick Cantlay, while fellow Queenslander Day earned a convincing 4 and 2 win over American James Hahn.
"You can't understand estimate anyone in this kind of format because it doesn't matter where you are ranked. Anything can happen in match play," Day said.
Smith got out to a three-hole lead but Cantlay, who won the US PGA Tour event in Las Vegas in November, mounted a late fightback.
The match went to the 18th hole, where Smith finished the job.
"(Patrick) went through a stretch there on the back nine where he just kept making some nice putts and put a lot of pressure on me but I was able to hold him out," Smith said.
Rounding out the Australian tilt was Marc Leishman, who lost his match against unheralded American Julian Suri, 3 and 2.
World No.72 Suri was the last man in the elite 64-man field and only received an exemption when Dutchman Joost Luiten withdrew injured.
Jason Dufner, who is in eighth-seed Day's group, earned a point with a one-up win over Louis Oosthuizen.
World No.2 Justin Thomas won two up against fellow American Luke List, who broke his putter on the front nine and had to use a wedge on the greens for most of the match.
Jordan Spieth beat South Africa's Charl Schwartzel 2 and 1, while Patrick Reed downed rising Chinese star Haotong Li 3 and 2.
Day one threw up some upset matches, notably defending champion and No.1 seed Dustin Johnson losing 3 and 1 to Bernd Wiesberger (52nd seed).
Five-time major winner and 14th seed Phil Mickelson losing 3 and 2 to Charles Howell III (59th), while 57th seed Peter Uihlein shocked last week's Arnold Palmer Invitational winner Rory McIlroy with a 2-and-1 win.
In-form ninth seed Tommy Fleetwood fell 3 and 2 to fellow Englishman Ian Poulter (58th).
