Seve was "deteriorating fast" when I first posted this last night, according to statements from his family, and sadly he passed away in the early hours this morning. I'm genuinely gutted by this, he was my childhood hero.
My top Seve moments:
1. 1976. The Open Championship at Birkdale. The 19-year-old Ballesteros stuns the world by leading the Open after the second round and still by 2 shots with a round to play, playing the third round in a bright yellow shirt as if he was leading the Tour de France. Almost inevitably Seve is overtaken by American giant Johnny Miller during the final round, but hangs on for second place and becomes an instant hero.
2. 1979. At Lytham, Ballesteros (who by now has truly announced himself on the world stage, winning a couple of big events in 1978) wins an extraordinary Open Championship, where he misses almost every fairway in the final round with some pounding but wayward driving, then fashions the most extraordinary recovery shots to win. Jack Nicklaus, no less, is beaten into second place.
3. 1980, Augusta. Seve takes the Masters and simply owns it. As many as 9 shots clear at one point during the final round, Seve wobbles a bit over the closing holes (his achilles heel would always be those closing holes there ...) but wins, and European golf suddenly has a champion who, like Tony Jacklin a decade before, has beaten the Yanks over here and over there. The NBC commentator bloke in the Butler Cabin announces him to a US audience as he puts the Green Jacket on as "Steve".
4. 1983, Augusta. Seve regains his Masters green jacket, on a final day that sees him overtake Tom Watson, Craig Stadler and Ray Floyd and hold off Ben Crenshaw and Tom Kite, thus single-handedly beating half of that year's US Ryder Cup team. Later that year, a Seve-inspired European team come within one hole of regaining the Ryder Cup for the first time since 1957. Seve also becomes world number one, the first European to hold that accolade since rankings began in the 1960s.
5. 1984, St. Andrews. Seve starts the final day of the Open behind leader Tom Watson, who was bidding to win the championship for the third year running. Seve plays his by now familiar brand of mercurial golf, balancing outrageous risk with genius recovery ability, and his day is capped with a curling 10-foot putt for birdie on the last that has the crowd roaring, just as Watson is bogeying the 17th behind him. Seve's fist-pumping celebration is the golfing image of the year, possibly the decade, and one might suggest the inspiration for a certain golfer who likes a bit of the old fist-pumping nowadays. Seve's win is greeted like a British one would have been by the "home" crowd - his wins in 1979 and 1984 are now the only Open championships not won by Americans (or Gary Player) since 1969, and Seve truly is taken to British hearts as one of their own.
6. 1985, the Belfry. Europe regain the Ryder Cup for the first time since 1957. Seve is without doubt the team's inspiration. Since his Masters victory in 1983, Bernhard Langer and Sandy Lyle have also become major champions.
7. 1986, Augusta. Seve blows the Masters, hitting his second shot into water at the 15th and then dunking his tee shot at 16, while Jack Nicklaus, up ahead, is on his way to an improbable victory. However, Seve's grace in defeat - tipping his cap on the final green to a now-cheering crowd, who had only moments before been jeering his errors - stays with me.
8. 1988, Lytham. Seve wins a third Open Championship, and goes back to world number one, finishing his victory with probably the best chip shot ever played on the final hole of a major championship that didn't actually go in, an immaculate 50-foot running shot that finished 6 inches away from the hole. Nick Price, who had been looking at a 10-foot putt of his own for a playoff (or even victory) had Seve messed up, just smiled and shook Seve's hand.
There are others (his captaincy of the 1997 Ryder Cup winning team, his dominance of the World Matchplay in the 1980s, him and his caddy walking disconsolate and alone in the mist back up the 10th fairway at the 1987 Masters, after 3-putting the first playoff hole, little knowing that Larry Mize was about to hole that shot on the next hole anyway to win and break Greg Norman's heart), his amazing Ryder Cup partnership with his 'protegé' Olazabal) but those will do, for now.
My top Seve moments:
1. 1976. The Open Championship at Birkdale. The 19-year-old Ballesteros stuns the world by leading the Open after the second round and still by 2 shots with a round to play, playing the third round in a bright yellow shirt as if he was leading the Tour de France. Almost inevitably Seve is overtaken by American giant Johnny Miller during the final round, but hangs on for second place and becomes an instant hero.
2. 1979. At Lytham, Ballesteros (who by now has truly announced himself on the world stage, winning a couple of big events in 1978) wins an extraordinary Open Championship, where he misses almost every fairway in the final round with some pounding but wayward driving, then fashions the most extraordinary recovery shots to win. Jack Nicklaus, no less, is beaten into second place.
3. 1980, Augusta. Seve takes the Masters and simply owns it. As many as 9 shots clear at one point during the final round, Seve wobbles a bit over the closing holes (his achilles heel would always be those closing holes there ...) but wins, and European golf suddenly has a champion who, like Tony Jacklin a decade before, has beaten the Yanks over here and over there. The NBC commentator bloke in the Butler Cabin announces him to a US audience as he puts the Green Jacket on as "Steve".
4. 1983, Augusta. Seve regains his Masters green jacket, on a final day that sees him overtake Tom Watson, Craig Stadler and Ray Floyd and hold off Ben Crenshaw and Tom Kite, thus single-handedly beating half of that year's US Ryder Cup team. Later that year, a Seve-inspired European team come within one hole of regaining the Ryder Cup for the first time since 1957. Seve also becomes world number one, the first European to hold that accolade since rankings began in the 1960s.
5. 1984, St. Andrews. Seve starts the final day of the Open behind leader Tom Watson, who was bidding to win the championship for the third year running. Seve plays his by now familiar brand of mercurial golf, balancing outrageous risk with genius recovery ability, and his day is capped with a curling 10-foot putt for birdie on the last that has the crowd roaring, just as Watson is bogeying the 17th behind him. Seve's fist-pumping celebration is the golfing image of the year, possibly the decade, and one might suggest the inspiration for a certain golfer who likes a bit of the old fist-pumping nowadays. Seve's win is greeted like a British one would have been by the "home" crowd - his wins in 1979 and 1984 are now the only Open championships not won by Americans (or Gary Player) since 1969, and Seve truly is taken to British hearts as one of their own.
6. 1985, the Belfry. Europe regain the Ryder Cup for the first time since 1957. Seve is without doubt the team's inspiration. Since his Masters victory in 1983, Bernhard Langer and Sandy Lyle have also become major champions.
7. 1986, Augusta. Seve blows the Masters, hitting his second shot into water at the 15th and then dunking his tee shot at 16, while Jack Nicklaus, up ahead, is on his way to an improbable victory. However, Seve's grace in defeat - tipping his cap on the final green to a now-cheering crowd, who had only moments before been jeering his errors - stays with me.
8. 1988, Lytham. Seve wins a third Open Championship, and goes back to world number one, finishing his victory with probably the best chip shot ever played on the final hole of a major championship that didn't actually go in, an immaculate 50-foot running shot that finished 6 inches away from the hole. Nick Price, who had been looking at a 10-foot putt of his own for a playoff (or even victory) had Seve messed up, just smiled and shook Seve's hand.
There are others (his captaincy of the 1997 Ryder Cup winning team, his dominance of the World Matchplay in the 1980s, him and his caddy walking disconsolate and alone in the mist back up the 10th fairway at the 1987 Masters, after 3-putting the first playoff hole, little knowing that Larry Mize was about to hole that shot on the next hole anyway to win and break Greg Norman's heart), his amazing Ryder Cup partnership with his 'protegé' Olazabal) but those will do, for now.
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