Wednesday, 14th November 2007 at 10:07 pm

Jim Furyk and Sergio Garcia to skip Sun City

One of Feverpitcher’s favourite Sun City moments is the sight of Sergio Garcia on the dance floor at Trader’s - the bar everyone tends to end up in sooner or later - in the small hours of the morning, clearly having a whale of a time; several hours later, and the smiling Spaniard was out on the first tee, driver in hand beneath a blazing sun, whereupon he went out and shot 67. Now that’s Feverpitcher’s kind of golf.

Sadly, it’s golf we won’t be seeing in 2007, for Garcia has decided to take a four-month break from the game effective immediately - which means no visit to the Nedbank Golf Challenge, an event he was set to headline. No exact reason for the break, although it’s hard not to think the ghosts of the Open play-off defeat aren’t lingering in there somewhere; Sergio’s promised to return, however, and hopefully 2008 will see him back at Sun City.

And the same hope applies to defending champion Jim Furyk, who’s opted out on medical advice. The man with the most unique swing in the game is very much a Sun City favourite; together, the loss of Furyk and Garcia represents a big blow. Tournament director Alastair Roper has put on a brave face, and replacement Trevor Immelman (along with Swede Niclas Fasth) does mean a fifth South African in the field; there’ll be a lot of disappointed Sergio fans out there, however, Feverpitcher firmly amongst them.