Garcia Is Never Worried About Crossing Fine Line

Sergio Garcia said he has not been fined for comments he made about a rules official after being assessed a two-stroke penalty that might have cost him a victory in Australia recently.

“No, [but] it’s no big deal,” said Garcia, who holds a share of the first-round Nissan Open lead with a five-under 66. “They fine me a lot of times in Europe. They are trying to make themselves rich from me. Hopefully, I can make a lot of money this week.”

Garcia lost an apparent two-stroke lead in the third round of the Greg Norman Holden Invitational in Sydney when European tour rules chief John Paramor penalized him for taking an incorrect drop on the first hole.

“Of course, I’m angry,” the Spanish star said before losing to Aaron Baddeley in a playoff the next day. “Hopefully, without John Paramor’s rules, I’ll be able to win.”

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Tom Scherrer had some experience with loud crowds before playing before Tiger Woods’ gallery Thursday, modest by Woods’ standards.

“In ’96 I played the last round in Phoenix with Phil Mickelson and Justin Leonard in front of 150,000 people. If I can get through that, I can get through anything,” Scherrer said.

“We were on the 10th, a par three. Phil hit it to about four feet. My friend, who’s from Ann Arbor [Mich.], was yelling in my ear. I didn’t know what he said ‘til later, but he was saying, ‘This is louder than Michigan Stadium.’ ”

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Mickelson opted to arrive late and not play a practice round at Riviera.

He shot 73.

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Brent Schwarzrock, who shares the first-round lead, moved to Sea Island, Ga., from central Florida after college.

“I got tired of the traffic and wasn’t going anywhere. I was kind of spinning my wheels with the people I knew,” he said. “I went to Sea Island one day with a friend of mine and said, ‘Man, I like this, the marsh, the river, the creek.’ I went to the golf course at Sea Island and asked if I could get a job. They said sure, and I dragged a U-Haul back up there in three days and started working.”

Schwarzrock hid his golf background at first and did menial jobs.

“Then I played one day with some members and I played really good, and they said, ‘You ever thought about trying to get on tour?’ I said, ‘Yeah, for 10 years. I just need a little help.’

“They put some money together for me, and I took off.”

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In memory of Dale Earnhardt, the PGA Tour placed a small, rectangular black cloth on the flag at the No. 3 hole. The black cloth, which was PGA Tour rules official Dillard Pruitt’s idea, will be on the flag all week.

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Just when you thought the check-in line at the airport was thinning out, Bob Burns withdrew. Burns is the 16th player to pull out of the tournament. Dan Forsman replaced Burns and shot a 72.

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The smallest pro playing the PGA Tour is 5-foot-2 Emanuele Canonica of Italy, who made the Nissan Open field through qualifying and opened with a three-under 68.

Canonica may be short, but he’s not skinny (165 pounds) and he certainly hits the ball a long way. He has led the European Tour in driving distance the last three years.

He is called “Peppo,” but countryman Costantino Rocca has another name for Canonica: “Ercolino.” That’s Little Hercules.

Canonica has missed his last three cuts, at Honolulu, Pebble Beach and Torrey Pines, after finishing 82nd at Tucson. He is 15th in driving distance, averaging 285.6 yards, but he is 191st in driving accuracy and 195th in putting.

Canonica also has picked up his share of admirers.

Says Nick Price: “He hits it as hard as Tiger Woods.”

Peppo and his business agent, Guidi Callani, have made themselves at home at Principe, an Italian restaurant (naturally) in Beverly Hills.