Golf: Garcia - Victory cannot replace Ryder Cup

Sergio Garcia considers it a real pity that the Ryder Cup is not starting at The Belfry on Friday.

Primarily, of course, he is thinking of the terrible circumstances which a week ago led to the postponement of the match for 12 months.

But, having won the Lancome Trophy in Paris yesterday, the 21-year-old Spaniard also regrets that he cannot now take his form into head-to-head duels with Tiger Woods, David Duval and the rest of Curtis Strange’s team.

‘‘The Ryder Cup is an unbelievable event,’’ said Garcia, who on his debut two years ago became the first teenager to appear.

‘‘This win does not make up for not having the match and it’s a shame we are not playing it. It’s like having honey on your lips, then it’s taken away.’’

Garcia dedicated his win - his third of the season, but first in Europe for almost two years - to the victims not only of the terrorist attacks in America, but also those who died in a gas explosion in Toulouse last week.

It was no ordinary victory either. Defending champion Retief Goosen was four shots clear with only four holes to play, but Garcia sank 15-foot birdie putts on the next three greens and the South African finished with two bogeys.

First he three-putted the 17th, missing from four feet, to fall back into a tie, then he found a plugged lie in a bunker left of the final green and saw his 18-foot putt for par horseshoe out.

Instead of taking the £150,000 first prize as expected, Goosen had to settle for £100,000.

With just over £1.5m this year, Goosen’s lead over Darren Clarke at the top of the European Order of Merit is now more than £425,000 but six events remain and he can still be stopped from becoming the first ‘‘outsider’’ to win the crown since Greg Norman in 1982.

What ought be bugging the 32-year-old, however, is that he appears to have a tendency to stumble before the finishing line is crossed.

In June, Goosen got away with bogeying the 72nd of the US Open, missing a two-foot putt, and also the last two holes of the play-off the next day to win his first major title.

Then, just under a month later, he escaped with two closing bogeys again in the Scottish Open at Loch Lomond after building up a healthy lead. He also won the 1997 French Open with a double bogey at the last hole.

Instead of heading now to Sutton Coldfield, Garcia is back in Spain for a month’s holiday, tennis and football being on his agenda for a change.

‘‘I think I’ve deserved it,’’ he said. His first two US Tour victories and now this have made him Europe’s top player in the world rankings and banished the memory of an unsuccessful 2000.

That caused him to examine what he was doing and what others were doing.

‘‘The thing that most impresses me about Tiger is not how many times he wins, but how many chances he gives himself to win. This year I’ve given myself a lot more and I’ve managed to take some.’’

This was the last sighting of him in Europe this season. On his return he is focusing on the US money list, where he currently lies sixth, and then comes the World Cup in Japan.