Golfer Sergio Garcia thrilled and amazed the golfing world yesterday by playing a shot out of a tree at the Arnold Palmer Invitational in Florida only to later withdraw from the tournament after injuring himself while playing the shot.

The Spaniard's wild tee shot on the 10th at Bay Hill lodged more than 15 feet up a tree, but after a few adjustments, Garcia struck the ball back into play with an amazing one-handed, backward shot.

"First I climbed to identify the ball and I saw I could hit it one-handed," Garcia said in a statement on his website. "Luckily it went OK."

Sergio's playing partner during the final round, William McGirt, told ESPN that he was as amazed as anyone else that the shot came off. "I looked over and Sergio is up in the air, and I'm trying to figure out what in the hell he's going to do. He called for a club. He's hugging the tree. And the ball comes flying out."

While the shot was a success, it came at a price with Garcia injuring his shoulder during the attempt. His injury became obvious after he duffed his next shot only 30 yards. He ended up with a double bogey on the hole. The final round was called off two holes later due to severe thunderstorms and Sergio withdrew shortly thereafter.

Garcia was concerned that he would aggravate the injury and then be unable to compete in the upcoming Master's Tournament.

"It wasn't an easy decision. I wanted to keep playing and finish the round and the tournament even though it was not my best day, but soreness grew and I decided to pull back to avoid further injuries," he said.

The final round at Bay Hill resumed today with Tiger Woods leading by three shots.

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