Spanish golf ace Sergio Garcia has claimed that he put a hand-written letter of apology in Tiger Woods' US Open locker in an attempt to bring closure to the row caused by his 'fried chicken' insult towards the world No1.
According to the Guardian, Garcia had judged it inappropriate to apologise to Woods face-to-face when he shook hands with him at the Merion driving range on Monday and had taken a different approach after failing to locate the American later that day.
The report further said that the 'fried chicken' jibe, made on stage at a European Tour dinner last month, was widely interpreted as racist, adding that Woods had branded Garcia's words as 'hurtful' and 'clearly inappropriate' at the time.
Confirming that Garcia did not apologise to him at Merion, Woods said that the Spaniard had just shaken hands with him and said 'hi', adding that they have already put an end to that matter.
Stating that he had left an apology note for Woods to collect, Garcia said that he had felt that the driving range was not an appropriate place for him to apologise, out of respect for Woods and the other players that were present there, adding that he had hoped to meet the American after his practice round, but failed to do so.
However, he refrained from disclosing the contents of the letter, saying that it is up to Woods to do so if he wishes, adding that he wished that he could go back in time and take back his words after a black member of the media put it to Garcia that his statement towards Woods had a 'stinging feeling' to the wider community.
Speaking of his distress over the affair, Garcia, who earned a public rebuke from his main sponsor, Adidas TaylorMade, said that the only thing he can do is show his respect by moving forward from the incident.
