Sergio Garcia and Tiger Woods shared a brief exchange on Monday at Merion Golf Club, shaking hands on the driving range and apparently attempted to move toward reconciliation. This marked the first time the two have been face to face since Garcia made a "fried chicken" comment directed at Woods on May 21 at a European Tour function outside of London.
Garcia has since apologized in both in a statement and during a news conference, while Woods responded at the Memorial Tournament two weeks ago saying that the matter was done and it was time for both sides to move on.
However, Monday's exchange marks the first time Garcia attempted a face-to-face apology. When asked about their brief exchange after a practice round Monday, Woods responded by saying, "I'm not going there" and simply made reference to a Tuesday news conference in advance of the U.S. Open at Merion.
The driving range where the handshake took place is on Merion's West Course, the practice site for the week before the players move to the East Course, the site of the tournament.
The tension between the two golfers reached an all-time high last month during the third round of the Players Championship, when Garcia suggested Woods showed poor form in pulling a club from his bag - thereby causing spectators to cheer - just as he was about to hit a shot, one that he hit poorly.
Following the incident, a series of jabs went back and forth between Garcia and Woods in the media, with gallery marshals offering different takes on the matter, and neither player seemingly willing to budge and move on.
But their rivalry escalated when Garcia's attempt at humor went sour. He was jokingly asked if he would be having dinner with Woods this week during the U.S. Open and replied: "We'll have him 'round every night. We will serve fried chicken."
Such references are viewed as a racial stereotype, and Woods did not take kindly to the remarks, saying on Twitter that they were "wrong, hurtful and inappropriate."
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