Sergio Garcia finds life good as defending Masters champ

Sergio Garcia said he will always shoot straight with the media. So, when he said he didn't know if he'd ever have the right stuff to win a major after a third-round 75 in the 2012 Masters knocked him out of contention, he meant it.

It lasted until he left the Augusta National Golf Club the following day, another disappointing major performance in his rear-view mirror but still with the hope that he would figure it out.

"You guys know how I am," Garcia said on Tuesday during a news conference at Augusta National. "I always say what I feel at the time and at that time, that's the way I felt. I felt like I was letting it slip away. But that didn't mean that as soon as I left Augusta my mind wasn't different. And obviously, if I thought that I didn't have what it takes to win a major, I would have probably stopped playing majors."

Five years later, Garcia found the right combination of resilience under pressure and being able to embrace the moment with more joy than dread when he birdied the first playoff hole (he needed only a par) to beat Justin Rose and win the Masters.

Garcia had finally won a major in his 74th start, and after 22 top-10s, 12 top-fives and six top-threes.

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"Mentally, I was a little more in sync than maybe in the past," he said. "I was probably enjoying the moment more than in the past. I was just believing in myself and things happened. It's as simple as that."

A few months later, Garcia married his wife, Angela. Last month, the two welcomed their first child into the world, Azalea, named for the flower Augusta National has designated as the signature plant at the par-5 13th hole.

Life is good for the supremely talented Spaniard, who had chances to win all four majors before finally closing it out last year.

"It's been three amazing days already," Garcia said about his week as defending champion. "The feel that you get and the receptions that you get coming to Augusta as a Masters champion are different. It's unbelievable. I'm enjoying every minute of it and just hoping that I can go out there and play great again and have a chance of defending a green jacket."

Garcia also announced his menu for the champions dinner: tapas, Caesar salad with ingredients to represent all of the countries that have produced Masters winners, a Spanish lobster-rice dish and tres leche cake.

If Garcia does repeat, it will be the first back-to-back champion since Tiger Woods in 2001 and 2002. And there are no signs that his game has slackened since winning the Masters, his 10th PGA Tour title. He added his 13th European PGA Tour victory later in the year in his home country and this season, Garcia has posted three consecutive top-10 finishes entering the Masters and has not missed a cut in a combination of seven PGA Tour and European Tour starts.

His best finishes were in tournaments with strong fields, the World Golf Championships in Mexico (a tie for seventh) and his American base in Austin, Texas (a tie for ninth), plus a solo fourth at the Valspar Championship in Palm Harbor, Fla.

"Preparation has been good," he said. "I feel like my game is quite solid. I'm coming off three good tournaments, three top-10s. This is my first time defending a major ... so it's new to me. But no matter what, this week is going to be amazing and the most beautiful thing about it is that I get to play the Masters ... until I can't walk. So that's pretty cool."