Is Garcia finally ready for Major success?

As anniversaries go, not all are worth celebrating. The fact that it was 15 years ago when Sergio Garcia made his professional debut in the grandest golf gathering there is, the Open Championship?

No need for cards and flowers, not even a pat on the back.

In fact, if you want to ignore mention of the anniversary altogether, even better.

His Royal Liverpool week would be quite pleasant without any of that recall. After all, when you’re 19 and your chosen profession begins with scores of 89-83, when you collapse into your mother’s arms with tears, when the ferocity of Carnoustie humbles you into thinking you’ve made an awful career decision... well, who needs to rekindle those sort of memories?

Best we move right into the here and now, which is a place that provides Garcia with great contentment. That’s what happens with a round of four under 68 to begin your Open Championship week.

“Today was beautiful and it was the perfect day to enjoy it,” the Spaniard said.

For the record, he was talking about the weather, though he could have been talking about his golf, which even a sloppy bogey at the par-5 10th couldn’t ruin. He offset that with five birdies and even though he played Royal Liverpool’s longer holes in level par, it was a day of positive investments for Garcia, who remains one of the game’s greatest enigmas.

Supremely talented, emotionally challenged.

No surprise then, that while he sat just two off of Rory McIlroy’s clubhouse lead, Garcia couldn’t bring himself to flash a wide smile or joke around.

Perhaps it’s all those years of precociousness. Maybe it’s the shots the media took at him when he was embroiled in those racists comments with Woods.

Then again it could be the frustration he feels for his inability to win one of these Majors.

He is, after all, 0-for-63 in golf’s biggest tournaments.

Ooops, sorry about all that, Sergio. Let’s turn our attention back to the first round at Liverpool where he birdied three of the first five holes and jammed his name right into the thick of things in this, his 18th Open.

Truth is, there were glimpses of a slight smile, but quickly, Garcia seized for perspective.

“It’s only the first day,” he said. “There’s so many things that can happen out there. It would be nice to put myself in a position to have a solid chance on Sunday, like I did a couple of times (before).”

Ah, there’s the rub, and let the record show that it was Garcia who invited historical references into the mix. So here’s a reminder of 2006 when Garcia drew a starting time opposite the leader, Tiger Woods, in Round 4 of the Open at Hoylake, arrived dressed as a banana, shot 73 and faded to joint fifth. Or a reminder of 2007 when he put one hand on the Claret Jug when Pádraig Harrington double-bogeyed the 18th hole, only to let it slip away with a bogey at the 72nd hole and a play-off loss to the Irishman.

So tough were those back-to-back blows that Garcia has hardly made much of a splash since then. In six starts since 2007, the Spaniard had one top 10 and a series of pedestrian finishes and with shortcomings in the Masters, US Open, and PGA Championship his Majors void has stretched to painful lengths.

He is not alone, of course, because Colin Montgomerie had a brilliant career, but never a Major win.

In recent years, however, two of Garcia’s closest peers from the 1980 crop of golf stars — Adam Scott and Justin Rose — have broken through for Major wins and it’s hard to believe that such a reality doesn’t get the Spaniard’s blood bubbling.

It should, too, because he’s an immense talent, arguably the most consistent ball-striker of his generation, a brilliant driver of the golf ball, and fearless in a very good way.

But moody? Oh, how that character flaw hinders him and so often puts a halt to whatever forward progress he is making. Frankly, it’s always been tough to watch and even players have agreed. Luke Donald and Adam Scott — both fans and friends of the Spaniard — have pulled Garcia aside and told him to pay heed to his behaviour.

Maybe at 34 he’s ready to surprise us, to maintain composure throughout, to not let his combustive personality squander yet another major opportunity.

It wouldn’t be the worst thing for the game, by the way.