Vincent Sennen "Sunny" Garcia (born January 14, 1970) is an American professional surfer from Waianae, Hawaii. After leaving school he debuted on the 1986 Gotcha Pro at Sandy Beach, Oahu, beating the 1984 champ Tom Carroll.
His top surfing achievement was becoming the ASP WCT World Champion in 2000. Garcia also holds the record for most WQS event wins (22 wins) and holds six Triple Crown of Surfing titles. In addition, he was the second professional surfer to win over $1 million in prize money.
He initially retired in 2005 but returned to competition. In 2008, his hopes for ASP World Tour qualification were dashed with early elimination in the O'Neill World Cup of Surfing.
He has served prison time for tax evasion and was arrested for fighting.
Career
Garcia was a dominant force in the Hawaiian Surfing Association starting as a 17-year-old on the 1986 WCT, beating former champion Tom Carroll and threatening to cause an upset to the top 16. Despite this early promise he just failed to break into this elite group in his debut season. The following year he finished in 16th position. In 2011, Garcia was the host of the Surfers for Cystic Fibrosis golf tournament fundraiser that has been organized by the charitable organization The Mauli Ola Foundation. Proceeds will fund surf experience days cystic fibrosis sufferers.
Personal life
Garcia was born Vincent Sennen Garcia on January 14, 1970, in Mā'ili, on the Westside of Oahu, Hawaii. Garcia is of Puerto Rican and Hawaiian heritage from his father's side and Hawaiian, Chinese, Filipino, Irish, and Native American heritage from his mother's side. His nickname "Sunny" was given to him by his mother, due to his cheerful disposition as an infant. Following his parents' divorce, Garcia lived with his mother near Mā'ili point, close to the beach. All three marriages ended in divorce, most recently in 2016.
In October 2006, Garcia was sentenced to federal prison for tax fraud after failing to pay taxes on unreported contest winnings from 1996 to 2001. Garcia failed to report over $471,000 in prize money on his tax returns for those years, resulting in a three-month sentence, beginning January 12, 2007, plus a further 7 months of house arrest and 80 hours community service with Goodwill.
On 21 February 2011, the ASP Rules and Disciplinary Committee convened to assess an alleged brawl involving Garcia, Jeremy Flores, and a local surfer, who allegedly dropped in on Garcia's teenage son while surfing on 19 February 2011 on the Gold Coast, Queensland, Australia. In accordance with the ASP Rulebook, immediately following the incident, then-active surfer Jeremy Flores was suspended from the 4-star Breaka Burleigh Pro event at Burleigh Heads, and then-eliminated surfer Garcia was suspended from the 4-star Burton Toyota Pro in Newcastle, New South Wales. An amateur cameraman who filmed the brawl alleged he was attacked by Sunny Garcia soon after, when he approached him on land. The cameraman lodged an official assault complaint with Gold Coast Police but withdrew it on the afternoon of 21 February 2011.
Witnesses allege Garcia went after the cameraman, knocking him to the ground and inflicting deep grazes to his back and arms with one of the man's hands receiving injuries. The cameraman told police he wanted to drop his complaint after receiving threats from locals and Garcia's overseas supporters warning of retribution and sought to lie low in his native Brazil until the surf rage furor died down. The cameraman was quoted as saying, "I'm too scared to press charges...Garcia could go to jail and then people would want to get me. At the moment I just don't feel safe...I've had threats on the internet I don't know how I'd protect myself and my family if something happened". Garcia sought legal advice from high-profile Gold Coast lawyer Chris Nyst. On 3 May 2011, Queensland Police Service confirmed an arrest warrant has been issued for a 41-year-old man on a charge of common assault, the reporting newspaper linked the warrant to Garcia. On 4 May 2011, Garcia's lawyer, Chris Nyst, confirmed the arrest warrant for Garcia, that it involves the young surfer who was allegedly assaulted, advised continued co-operation from Garcia with police and is confident his client would be exonerated.
On April 30, 2019, the World Surf League announced that Garcia was in critical condition at a Portland hospital. Garcia had attempted suicide the previous day. On September 17, 2019, Garcia's daughter, Kaila, reported that Sunny had previously been in a coma, but was speaking again and doing physical, speech and occupational therapy. Since December 2014, Garcia had been open about his struggles with depression and mental health, and encouraged those who deal with mental illness to talk about their feelings with others.
Achievements
Titles/records held
- 2000 ASP WCT World Champion
- 2004 Triple Crown of Surfing
- 2000 Triple Crown of Surfing
- 1999 Triple Crown of Surfing
- 1994 Triple Crown of Surfing
- 1993 Triple Crown of Surfing
- 1992 Triple Crown of Surfing
- 1987–1988 ASP's Men's Most Improved award
- 1990 ASP's Men's Most Improved award
- Most victories in WQS competition (22)
- Most Triple Crown of Surfing titles (6)
History of wins
2004
- Vans Hawaiian Pro (Alii Beach - Hale'iwa, Hawaii)
2002
- G-Shock Hawaiian Pro (Alii Beach - Haleiwa, Hawaii)
2000
- Billabong Pro (Kirra Point - Gold Coast, Australia)
- Rip Curl Pro Bells Beach, (Australia)
- Panasonic Shockwave US Open (Huntington Beach, California)
- G-Shock Hawaiian Pro (Alii Beach - Haleiwa, Hawaii)
- Rip Curl World Cup (Sunset Beach - Oahu, Hawaii)
1997
- Katin Team Challenge (Huntington Beach, California)
1996
- Rip Curl Pro (Bells Beach, Australia)
- Town and Country (Ala Moana - Oahu, Hawaii)
1995
- Rip Curl Pro (Bells Beach, Australia)
- Quiksilver Surfmasters (Grande Plage - Biarritz, France)
- Rusty Pro (Honolua Bay - Maui, Hawaii)
- Op Pro (Huntington Beach, California)
- T&C/Bud Surf Tour Championships (Mākaha - Oahu, Hawaii)
1994
- Reunion Pro (Saint-Leu, Réunion)
- Billabong Kirra Pro (Kirra Point - Gold Coast, Australia)
- T&C/Bud Surf Tour Championships (Mākaha - Oahu, Hawaii)
- Hapuna World Cup of Surfing (Sunset Beach - Oahu, Hawaii)
1993
- HIC Pro (Banzai Pipeline - Oahu, Hawaii)
- Op Pro (Huntington Beach, California)
- Wyland Galleries Hawaiian Pro (Alii Beach - Haleiwa, Hawaii)
1992
- Gunston 500 (Durban, Natal, South Africa)
- T&C O'Neill Pro (Kuhio Beach - Maui, Hawaii)
- Pukas Pro (Zarauz, Basque Country, Spain)
- Marui/Surfin' Life Qualifying (Hebara Beach - Chiba, Japan)
- Miyazaki Qualifying (Miyazaki, Japan)
- Xcel Pro (Sunset Beach - Oahu, Hawaii)
- Wyland Galleries Hawaiian Pro (Alii Beach - Haleiwa, Hawaii)
1990
- Pukas Pro (Zarauz, Basque Country, Spain)
- Seland Pro (Sopelana, Basque Country, Spain)
Awards
In 2010, Sunny was inducted into the Surfing Walk of Fame at Huntington Beach.