Severiano Ballesteros

Severiano Ballesteros
Seve Ballesteros 2006-07-19.jpg
Personal Information
Birth 9 April 1957 (1957-04-09) (age 52)
Pedreña, Spain
Height 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m)
Weight 185 lb (84 kg)
Nationality Spain
Spouse Carmen (1988-2004)
Children Javier (1990), Miguel (1992),
Carmen (1994)
Residence Santander, Spain
College None
Career
Turned Pro 1974
Retired 2007
Former Tours European Tour, Champions Tour, European Seniors Tour
Professional wins 91 (European Tour: 49, PGA Tour: 9, Other: 36)
Best Results in Major Championships
Wins: 5
Masters Won 1980, 1983
U.S. Open 3rd: 1987
The Open Championship Won 1979, 1984, 1988
PGA Championship 5th: 1984
Awards
European Tour Order
of Merit Winner		 1976, 1977, 1978, 1986, 1988, 1991
World Golf Hall of Fame 1999

Severiano "Seve" Ballesteros (born 9 April 1957) is a Spanish professional golfer and former World No. 1, who was one of the sport's leading figures from the mid 1970s to the mid 1990s. He announced himself to the golfing world in 1976, when at age 19 he finished second at The Open Championship. A part of a gifted golfing family, Ballesteros won five major tournaments between the years of 1979 and 1988, including The Masters twice. He was also successful in the Ryder Cup, helping the European team to five wins both as a player and captain.

Due to back-related injuries, Ballesteros struggled with form during the 1990s. In spite of this, he continued to be involved in the game of golf, creating the Seve Trophy and running a golf course design business. Ballesteros eventually retired from competitive golf in 2007 due to continued poor form.

Contents

Career outline

Early life and career

Ballesteros was born in Pedreña, Cantabria, Spain. He learned the game while playing on the beaches near his home, mainly using a 3-iron given to him by one of his older brothers. His uncle Ramón Sota was Spanish professional champion four times and finished 6th in The Masters in 1965.[1] Severiano's older brother Manuel finished in the top 100 on the European Tour order of merit every year from 1972 to 1983, and later became Severiano's manager. Brothers Vicente and Baldomero, and nephew Raúl are also professional golfers.[2][3][4]

Ballesteros turned professional in March 1974 at the age of 16. In 1976, he burst onto the international scene with a second-place finish in The Open Championship at Royal Birkdale Golf Club. Ballesteros led by two shots after the third round, but a final round 74 saw him tie with Jack Nicklaus, six shots behind the winner Johnny Miller.[5][6] He went on to win the European Tour Order of Merit (money title) that year, a title that he would win six times, including the next two years, which was a record at that time (since surpassed by Colin Montgomerie).[7] In 1988, he led the Official World Golf Rankings at the end of the year; these rankings were not inaugurated until April 1986, but Ballesteros also led McCormack's World Golf Rankings, published in McCormack's "World Of Professional Golf" annuals (from which the official rankings were developed) from 1983 to 1985.[8] He led the Official World Golf Rankings for a total of 61 weeks from 1986 to 1989.

Ballesteros went on to win five major championships: The Masters in 1980 and 1983, and The Open Championship in 1979, 1984 and 1988.[7] His 1980 Masters win was the first by a European player, and at the time he was the youngest winner of the tournament, at 23 (though this record was broken by Tiger Woods in 1997).[9] His 1979 win at The Open Championship similarly made him the youngest winner of the tournament in the 20th century, and the first golfer from continental Europe to win a major since Frenchman Arnaud Massy won The Open in 1907.[10]

He was also a great at match play; he won the World Match Play Championship five times, and was a mainstay of the European Ryder Cup team for much of the 1980s and 1990s. He scored 20 points out of 37 matches against the United States; his partnership with fellow Spaniard José María Olazábal was the most successful in the history of the competition, with 11 wins and two halved matches out of 15 pairs matches.[11] While Ballesteros was a member of European sides that won the Ryder Cup in 1985, retained the Cup in 1987 and 1989, and regained the Cup in 1995, the pinnacle of his career in the competition came in 1997, when he captained the winning European side at Valderrama Golf Club in Sotogrande, Spain. This was the first Ryder Cup ever held in continental Europe.[12][13]

Late career and retirement

In 1999, Ballesteros was inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame, joining greats such as Jack Nicklaus and Arnold Palmer.[14] He was instrumental in introducing the Seve Trophy in 2000, a team competition similar to the Ryder Cup pitting a team from Great Britain and Ireland against one from continental Europe.[15][16] In 2000, Ballesteros was ranked as the 16th greatest golfer of all time by Golf Digest magazine; he was the top golfer from the continent of Europe.[17]

Ballesteros had played sparingly since the late 1990s due to back problems, and made his first start in years at the 2005 Madrid Open. He stated a desire to play more tournaments in the 2006 season. He entered the 2006 Open Championship, having played just one other event on the European Tour, The Open de France Alstom, where he missed the cut. He runs a thriving golf course design business, is divorced with three children and has been eligible for the Champions Tour and European Seniors Tour upon turning 50 in 2007.[18] Ballesteros has been the captain of the European team in the Royal Trophy since its inception in 2006.[19] He was announced again as non-playing captain of the 2008 European team to defend the Royal Trophy against the Asian team at the Amata Spring Country Club in Bangkok.[20][21]

After further recurrence of his back problems, which contributed to his finishing tied for last in his only Champions Tour start, Ballesteros announced his retirement from golf on 16 July 2007, bringing down the curtain on an illustrious career. During the news conference, he also addressed reports in European media that he had attempted suicide, saying that those reports "were not even close to reality". He had been briefly hospitalized when he became concerned about the condition of his heart, but was released the same day after being given a clean bill of health.[22]

Ballesteros is a member of the Laureus World Sports Academy.[23]

Brain tumor

Ballesteros was reported to be "gravely ill" and in a Madrid hospital on 10 October 2008.[24] Two days later, he confirmed that he had been diagnosed with a brain tumor.[25] On 15 October, Spanish news agency Efe reported that he had undergone a twelve hour surgery to resect the tumor. A hospital spokeswoman stated that surgeons had removed a sizable part of the tumor.[26] On 23 October, it was confirmed publicly that the tumor was classified as a cancerous oligoastrocytoma, and after a quick deterioration of his health, further surgery took place on 24 October to stabilize him and try to remove the remainder of the tumor. On 24 October, it was confirmed that the tumor was removed after a six and a half hour surgery. He is remaining in the hospital in critical condition. On 3 November, it as confirmed by the hospital that he was starting his rehabilitation in the intensive care unit, and is breathing steadily.[27][28] On 18 November 2008, he was moved out of the intensive care unit and changed wards at Madrid's La Paz Hospital to continue his rehabilitation.[29][30]

European Tour wins (49)

Major championships are shown in bold.

Ballesteros's win in the 1976 Lancome Trophy is omitted from his win list on his profile on the European Tour's official site, so only 48 wins are listed. This appears to be an error (1976 was the first year that the Trophy was an official money event, and it is included in the 1976 schedule on the official site, whereas the 1975 event was not). Some sources state that Ballesteros has 50 European Tour wins, but the basis for that figure is unclear.

PGA Tour wins (9)

Major championships are shown in bold. (The Open Championship wins also count as PGA Tour wins. The two majors played in the United States did not count as European Tour events before 1987.)

Japan Golf Tour wins (6)

Other wins (30)

Major Championships

Wins (5)

Year Championship 54 Holes Winning Score Margin Runner(s) Up
1979 The Open Championship 2 shot deficit -1 (73-65-75-70=283) 3 strokes Flag of the United States Jack Nicklaus, Flag of the United States Ben Crenshaw
1980 The Masters 7 shot lead -13 (66-69-68-72=275) 4 strokes Flag of the United States Gibby Gilbert, Flag of Australia Jack Newton
1983 The Masters (2) 1 shot deficit -8 (68-70-73-69=280) 4 strokes Flag of the United States Ben Crenshaw, Flag of the United States Tom Kite
1984 The Open Championship (2) 2 shot deficit -12 (69-68-70-69=276) 2 strokes Flag of the United States Tom Watson, Flag of Germany Bernhard Langer
1988 The Open Championship (3) 2 shot deficit -12 (67-71-70-65=273) 2 strokes Flag of Zimbabwe Nick Price

Results timeline

Tournament 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979
The Masters DNP DNP T33 T18 T12
U.S. Open DNP DNP DNP T16 CUT
The Open Championship CUT T2 T15 T17 1
PGA Championship DNP DNP DNP DNP DNP
Tournament 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989
The Masters 1 CUT T3 1 CUT T2 4 T2 T11 5
U.S. Open DQ T41 CUT T4 T30 T5 T24 3 T32 T43
The Open Championship T19 T39 T13 T6 1 T39 T6 T50 1 T77
PGA Championship DNP T33 13 T27 5 T32 CUT T10 CUT T12
Tournament 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999
The Masters T7 T22 T59 T11 T18 T45 43 CUT CUT CUT
U.S. Open T33 CUT T23 CUT T18 CUT DNP DNP DNP DNP
The Open Championship CUT T9 CUT T27 T38 T40 CUT CUT CUT CUT
PGA Championship CUT T23 DNP DNP CUT CUT DNP DNP DNP DNP
Tournament 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007
The Masters CUT CUT CUT CUT DNP DNP DNP CUT
U.S. Open DNP DNP DNP DNP DNP DNP DNP DNP
The Open Championship CUT CUT DNP DNP DNP DNP CUT DNP
PGA Championship DNP DNP DNP DNP DNP DNP DNP DNP

DNP = did not play
CUT = missed the half way cut
DQ = disqualified
"T" indicates a tie for a place.
Green background for wins. Yellow background for top-10.

Summary of major championship performances

Team appearances

See also

Notes and references

  1. ↑ "Seve Ballesteros Golf Legends". www.golflegends.org. Retrieved on 2008-02-07.
  2. ↑ "Seve Ballesteros Biography". www.biography.com. Retrieved on 2008-02-07.
  3. ↑ "Severiano Ballesteros". Golfing Greats. Retrieved on 2008-02-07.
  4. ↑ "Ballesteros graces San Roque leaderboard - but it's not Seve", Reuters. Retrieved on 2008-01-13. 
  5. ↑ "Results for 1976, Royal Birkdale". OpenGolf.com. Retrieved on 2008-01-13.
  6. ↑ "Miller and Ballesteros battle for the Open title". OpenGolf.com. Retrieved on 2008-02-06.
  7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 "European Team Captain - Seve Ballesteros". www.theroyaltrophy.com. Retrieved on 2008-01-13.
  8. ↑ "The Official World Golf Ranking 1986-2000". www.golftoday.co.uk. Retrieved on 2007-01-19.
  9. ↑ Bowser, Betty Ann. "Year of the Tiger", PBS. Retrieved on 2008-01-19. 
  10. ↑ "World Golf Hall of Fame Member Profile". World Golf Hall of Fame. Retrieved on 2008-01-19.
  11. ↑ Kelley, Brent. "Biography of golfer Seve Ballesteros". About.com. Retrieved on 2007-01-19.
  12. ↑ "Ryder Cup: Past Results". The PGA of America, Ryder Cup Limited, and Turner Sports Interactive. Retrieved on 2008-01-19.
  13. ↑ "1997 Ryder Cup". The PGA of America, Ryder Cup Limited, and Turner Sports Interactive. Retrieved on 2008-01-19.
  14. ↑ "PLUS: GOLF -- HALL OF FAME; 3 Members Named". The New York Times (1999-03-23). Retrieved on 2008-02-12.
  15. ↑ "Seve Trophy 2005: Seve Ballesteros". www.seve-trophy.com. Retrieved on 2008-01-19.
  16. ↑ "Laois County Council - Seve Trophy 2007". Laois County Council. Retrieved on 2008-01-19.
  17. ↑ Yocom, Guy (July 2000). "50 Greatest Golfers of All Time: And What They Taught Us". Golf Digest. Retrieved on 2007-12-05.
  18. ↑ Corrigan, James. "Ballesteros calls time on competitive career after 32 years", Independent News and Media Ltd.. Retrieved on 2008-01-20. 
  19. ↑ "Royal Trophy 2006". www.theroyaltrophy.com. Retrieved on 2008-01-19.
  20. ↑ "The Royal Trophy 2008". www.theroyaltrophy.com. Retrieved on 2008-01-19.
  21. ↑ "Amata Spring Country Club". www.theroyaltrophy.com. Retrieved on 2008-01-19.
  22. ↑ "Ballesteros retires after failed try on Champions Tour". ESPN.com (2007-07-16). Retrieved on 2007-07-16.
  23. ↑ Lareus official website.
  24. ↑ Severiano Ballesteros 'gravely ill' in hospital
  25. ↑ Seve confirms brain tumour
  26. ↑ Ballesteros undergoes brain surgery
  27. ↑ "Ballesteros brain tumor is cancerous", Associated Press (2008-10-23). Retrieved on 2008-10-23. 
  28. ↑ "Ballesteros 'stable' after third brain op", CNN (2008-10-24). Retrieved on 2008-10-24. 
  29. ↑ Ballesteros leaves intensive care ward
  30. ↑ Ballesteros leaves intensive care

External links

World Number ones since 1986

Seve Ballesteros | Fred Couples | David Duval | Ernie Els | Nick Faldo | Bernhard Langer | Tom Lehman | Greg Norman | Nick Price | Vijay Singh | Tiger Woods* | Ian Woosnam 

*Tiger Woods (USA) is the current World No. 1, and has spent the most weeks in that position, currently over 500.
The Masters champions

1934 Horton Smith • 1935 Gene Sarazen • 1936 Horton Smith • 1937 Byron Nelson • 1938 Henry Picard • 1939 Ralph Guldahl • 1940 Jimmy Demaret • 1941 Craig Wood • 1942 Byron Nelson • 1943-45 Cancelled due to World War II • 1946 Herman Keiser • 1947 Jimmy Demaret • 1948 Claude Harmon • 1949 Sam Snead • 1950 Jimmy Demaret • 1951 Ben Hogan • 1952 Sam Snead • 1953 Ben Hogan • 1954 Sam Snead • 1955 Cary Middlecoff • 1956 Jack Burke, Jr. • 1957 Doug Ford • 1958 Arnold Palmer • 1959 Art Wall, Jr. • 1960 Arnold Palmer • 1961 Gary Player • 1962 Arnold Palmer • 1963 Jack Nicklaus • 1964 Arnold Palmer • 1965 Jack Nicklaus • 1966 Jack Nicklaus • 1967 Gay Brewer • 1968 Bob Goalby • 1969 George Archer • 1970 Billy Casper • 1971 Charles Coody • 1972 Jack Nicklaus • 1973 Tommy Aaron • 1974 Gary Player • 1975 Jack Nicklaus • 1976 Raymond Floyd • 1977 Tom Watson • 1978 Gary Player • 1979 Fuzzy Zoeller • 1980 Severiano Ballesteros • 1981 Tom Watson • 1982 Craig Stadler • 1983 Severiano Ballesteros • 1984 Ben Crenshaw • 1985 Bernhard Langer • 1986 Jack Nicklaus • 1987 Larry Mize • 1988 Sandy Lyle • 1989 Nick Faldo • 1990 Nick Faldo • 1991 Ian Woosnam • 1992 Fred Couples • 1993 Bernhard Langer • 1994 José María Olazábal • 1995 Ben Crenshaw • 1996 Nick Faldo • 1997 Tiger Woods • 1998 Mark O'Meara • 1999 José María Olazábal • 2000 Vijay Singh • 2001 Tiger Woods • 2002 Tiger Woods • 2003 Mike Weir • 2004 Phil Mickelson • 2005 Tiger Woods • 2006 Phil Mickelson • 2007 Zach Johnson • 2008 Trevor Immelman
The Open champions

1860 Willie Park, Snr. · 1861 Tom Morris, Sr. · 1862 Tom Morris, Sr. · 1863 Willie Park, Snr. · 1864 Tom Morris, Sr. · 1865 Andrew Strath · 1866 Willie Park, Snr. · 1867 Tom Morris, Sr. · 1868 Tom Morris, Jr. · 1869 Tom Morris, Jr. · 1870 Tom Morris, Jr. · 1871 No championship · 1872 Tom Morris, Jr. · 1873 Tom Kidd · 1874 Mungo Park · 1875 Willie Park, Snr. · 1876 Bob Martin · 1877 Jamie Anderson · 1878 Jamie Anderson · 1879 Jamie Anderson · 1880 Bob Ferguson · 1881 Bob Ferguson · 1882 Bob Ferguson · 1883 Willie Fernie · 1884 Jack Simpson · 1885 Bob Martin · 1886 David Brown · 1887 Willie Park, Jnr. · 1888 Jack Burns · 1889 Willie Park, Jnr. · 1890 John Ball · 1891 Hugh Kirkaldy · 1892 Harold Hilton · 1893 William Auchterlonie · 1894 John Henry Taylor · 1895 John Henry Taylor · 1896 Harry Vardon · 1897 Harold Hilton · 1898 Harry Vardon · 1899 Harry Vardon · 1900 John Henry Taylor · 1901 James Braid · 1902 Sandy Herd · 1903 Harry Vardon · 1904 Jack White · 1905 James Braid · 1906 James Braid · 1907 Arnaud Massy · 1908 James Braid · 1909 John Henry Taylor · 1910 James Braid · 1911 Harry Vardon · 1912 Edward Ray · 1913 John Henry Taylor · 1914 Harry Vardon · 1915-19 No Championships due to World War I · 1920 George Duncan · 1921 Jock Hutchison · 1922 Walter Hagen · 1923 Arthur Havers · 1924 Walter Hagen · 1925 Jim Barnes · 1926 Bobby Jones · 1927 Bobby Jones · 1928 Walter Hagen · 1929 Walter Hagen · 1930 Bobby Jones· 1931 Tommy Armour · 1932 Gene Sarazen · 1933 Denny Shute · 1934 Henry Cotton · 1935 Alf Perry · 1936 Alf Padgham · 1937 Henry Cotton · 1938 Reg Whitcombe · 1939 Richard Burton · 1940-45 No Championships due to World War II · 1946 Sam Snead · 1947 Fred Daly · 1948 Henry Cotton · 1949 Bobby Locke · 1950 Bobby Locke · 1951 Max Faulkner · 1952 Bobby Locke · 1953 Ben Hogan · 1954 Peter Thomson · 1955 Peter Thomson · 1956 Peter Thomson · 1957 Bobby Locke · 1958 Peter Thomson · 1959 Gary Player · 1960 Kel Nagle · 1961 Arnold Palmer · 1962 Arnold Palmer · 1963 Bob Charles · 1964 Tony Lema · 1965 Peter Thomson · 1966 Jack Nicklaus · 1967 Roberto DeVicenzo · 1968 Gary Player · 1969 Tony Jacklin · 1970 Jack Nicklaus · 1971 Lee Trevino · 1972 Lee Trevino · 1973 Tom Weiskopf · 1974 Gary Player · 1975 Tom Watson · 1976 Johnny Miller · 1977 Tom Watson · 1978 Jack Nicklaus · 1979 Severiano Ballesteros · 1980 Tom Watson · 1981 Bill Rogers · 1982 Tom Watson · 1983 Tom Watson · 1984 Severiano Ballesteros · 1985 Sandy Lyle · 1986 Greg Norman · 1987 Nick Faldo · 1988 Severiano Ballesteros · 1989 Mark Calcavecchia · 1990 Nick Faldo · 1991 Ian Baker-Finch · 1992 Nick Faldo · 1993 Greg Norman · 1994 Nick Price · 1995 John Daly · 1996 Tom Lehman · 1997 Justin Leonard · 1998 Mark O'Meara · 1999 Paul Lawrie · 2000 Tiger Woods · 2001 David Duval · 2002 Ernie Els · 2003 Ben Curtis · 2004 Todd Hamilton · 2005 Tiger Woods · 2006 Tiger Woods · 2007 Pádraig Harrington · 2008 Pádraig Harrington
European Ryder Cup Captains
Great Britain

1927 Ted Ray · 1929 George Duncan · 1931 Charles Whitcombe · 1933 John Henry Taylor · 1935 Charles Whitcombe · 1937 Charles Whitcombe · 1947 Henry Cotton · 1949 Charles Whitcombe · 1951 Arthur Lacey · 1953 Henry Cotton · 1955 Dai Rees · 1957 Dai Rees · 1959 Dai Rees · 1961 Dai Rees · 1963 John Fallon · 1965 Harry Weetman · 1967 Dai Rees · 1969 Eric Brown · 1971 Eric Brown

Great Britain & Ireland

1973 Bernard Hunt · 1975 Bernard Hunt · 1977 Brian Huggett

Europe

1979 John Jacobs · 1981 John Jacobs · 1983 Tony Jacklin · 1985 Tony Jacklin · 1987 Tony Jacklin · 1989 Tony Jacklin · 1991 Bernard Gallacher · 1993 Bernard Gallacher · 1995 Bernard Gallacher · 1997 Seve Ballesteros · 1999 Mark James · 2002 Sam Torrance · 2004 Bernhard Langer · 2006 Ian Woosnam · 2008 Nick Faldo
European Tour Order of Merit winners
1971 Peter Oosterhuis • 1972 Peter Oosterhuis • 1973 Peter Oosterhuis • 1974 Peter Oosterhuis • 1975 Dale Hayes • 1976 Seve Ballesteros • 1977 Seve Ballesteros • 1978 Seve Ballesteros • 1979 Sandy Lyle • 1980 Sandy Lyle • 1981 Bernhard Langer • 1982 Greg Norman • 1983 Nick Faldo • 1984 Bernhard Langer • 1985 Sandy Lyle • 1986 Seve Ballesteros • 1987 Ian Woosnam • 1988 Seve Ballesteros • 1989 Ronan Rafferty • 1990 Ian Woosnam • 1991 Seve Ballesteros • 1992 Nick Faldo • 1993 Colin Montgomerie • 1994 Colin Montgomerie • 1995 Colin Montgomerie • 1996 Colin Montgomerie • 1997 Colin Montgomerie • 1998 Colin Montgomerie • 1999 Colin Montgomerie • 2000 Lee Westwood • 2001 Retief Goosen • 2002 Retief Goosen • 2003 Ernie Els • 2004 Ernie Els • 2005 Colin Montgomerie • 2006 Pádraig Harrington • 2007 Justin Rose
European Tour Golfer of the Year
1985 Bernhard Langer • 1986 Seve Ballesteros • 1987 Ian Woosnam • 1988 Seve Ballesteros • 1989 Nick Faldo • 1990 Nick Faldo • 1991 Seve Ballesteros • 1992 Nick Faldo • 1993 Bernhard Langer • 1994 Ernie Els • 1995 Colin Montgomerie • 1996 Colin Montgomerie • 1997 Colin Montgomerie • 1998 Lee Westwood • 1999 Colin Montgomerie • 2000 Lee Westwood • 2001 Retief Goosen • 2002 Ernie Els • 2003 Ernie Els • 2004 Vijay Singh • 2005 Michael Campbell • 2006 Paul Casey • 2007 Pádraig Harrington
Persondata
NAME Severiano Ballesteros
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Seve Ballesteros
SHORT DESCRIPTION Professional golfer
DATE OF BIRTH 1957-04-09
PLACE OF BIRTH Pedreña, Spain
DATE OF DEATH
PLACE OF DEATH