Filed under: Golf
It was the final day, the final hole of the 1988 Open Championship at Royal Lytham and St Annes. And it was one of those moments to look back on and feel privileged to have been a sports writer.The stands were packed, as were the press seats. The only way to get a glimpse of the winning shot was to pick a way through the scaffolding under the seats and crane your neck round the poles. It felt dangerous, but it was worth it to see Severiano Ballesteros sink the winning putt.
I thought of that cameo when came the say-it-ain't-so news that Seve had died. And I thought of that beaming smile and the fist clenched and pumped. If you could have bottled and manufactured all that charisma and joy, you would have made billions.
Fulsome tributes have been paid to Ballesteros following his premature death at the age of 54, quite beautifully and appropriately. Not only was the Spaniard a master magician of a golfer, who won five major championships, he played the game with a glorious swagger that captured our imaginations.
Not for Seve the metronomic precision of the manufactured golfer. His was a natural, cavalier talent and as such he became dearly loved for his remarkable rescue shots.
Quite simply, he could do what we couldn't. I guess if we all practised enough we could play the game - any game - competently. But we could never play with the dash with which he played. It was what set him apart as God-gifted.
It is why, in any sport, we pay money to watch such people. The European Tour and all its journeyman golfers owe Ballesteros a debt for popularising the game and bringing in more television coverage and thus sponsors.
Seve also had some devilment in him. He could be short-tempered and cantankerous, resentful of authority. There were grudges with other players. In other words, he was human.
We should not forget it of our heroes and stars. Too often these days, we expect them to behave in a politically correct manner, reacting to adversity in the heat of battle as if without the emotions of the rest of us.
Ballesteros always remained true to his temperament, which could be volatile, but also showed commendable dignity and sportsmanship when calmness soon returned. His stoicism through his battle with a brain tumour told of his true grit.
Modern young sportsmen and women would do well to remember his example of being yourself, rather than fitting into conventional wisdom about your behaviour, but showing grace at the right time too.
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