On Masters Sunday, the name of Seve Ballesteros seemed to be on the tip of everyone’s tongue: It was the 40th anniversary of his second Masters win, it was Easter Sunday just like the first time he won in 1980, and, most poignant of all, it was his birthday. When Jon Rahm, a Spanish player, won the green jacket, it seemed to vindicate this numerology, and Rahm contributed to the almost religious atmosphere by dedicating his victory to Ballesteros, and declaring that he was “up there helping.” At the conclusion of his public speech, he said “rest in peace, Seve,” made the sign of the cross, and looked skyward.

It’s hard for me to put my emotions into words, but I want to thank everyone for supporting me. This one was for Seve. Having my family there made it even better. A dream come true! @TheMasters pic.twitter.com/LZ0JX41CIv

— Jon Rahm Rodriguez (@JonRahmpga) April 12, 2023

It was all reminiscent of the 2012 Ryder Cup at Medinah, when the European team, captained by Jose Maria Olazabal, overcame a massive deficit to win on the final day. That happened just over a year after the death of Ballesteros, and just like at this year’s Masters, his name was everywhere on that Sunday—including, quite literally, in the sky, where a hired plane wrote his name out for everyone to see. This concept that he might have had a posthumous influence on results is no glib tribute; it’s a fervent belief held by those who look up to him as a saint of the Spanish and European game. His stature is almost too enormous to quantify; as Ian Poulter once said, “Americans had Arnold Palmer and Jack Nicklaus, and before that Ben Hogan and Bobby Jones and others. For us Europeans, Seve is all of those people rolled into one.”

But Seve Ballesteros was no saint in life. He was, instead, someone who made enemies easily, particularly among his Ryder Cup opponents; who held grudges in an almost Jordan-esque fashion; who contributed to his own myth, in truth and in fiction; whose paranoia was so great, he slept with a .38 handgun under his pillow. Today, 12 years after his untimely death due to a brain tumour at age 54, it can be difficult to untangle the Ballesteros of reality with the mythic figure who continues to loom above European golf. The magic he possessed was no exaggeration, and it deservedly lives on, but nor is it the entire story. In today’s episode of Local Knowledge, we look at the legend of Seve Ballesteros, and the very real, very complex man from which that legend grew.

You can listen to the episode at the link below.

The post Seve Ballesteros: The myth and the reality appeared first on Golf Digest Middle East.

By Alex Myers
Darren Clarke believes Tiger Woods is the greatest golfer of all time. When it comes to picking up a dinner tab, however, the 14-time major champ doesn’t rank nearly has high on Clarke’s list.

Clarke appeared on the Dubai Eye Sports Tonight Podcast earlier this week and discussed his longtime opponent and friend at length. But while about 99 percent of the Tiger talk consisted of Clarke gushing about Woods, he couldn’t resist taking a little jab at his bud.

“He had a very successful savings account,” Clarke said with a chuckle. “He didn’t quite pay for too many dinners whenever we were out, I have to say. . . . He couldn’t even be coerced into paying for dinners.”

“He was as tight with the media as he was with his fellow players?” one of the hosts asked.

“I didn’t tell you that, but yes,” Clarke responded with another laugh.

Clarke also called Woods a “brilliant guy” and a “good guy” and said he was “fortunate” to be friends with one of sport’s biggest and most private figures. He said Woods texted him with words of encouragement and advice the week Clarke won his lone major at the 2011 British Open and that the two still communicate from time to time.

Clarke says the two first got friendly when they were both being coached by Butch Harmon in Vegas and that “we had some great times out there.” But as the podcasts hosts excitedly jumped in for more details, Clarke quickly said, “I was going to clarify, off of the golf course.”

Whatever you say, Darren. Clarke said he and his fellow tour pros are hopeful that Tiger can return from his latest back surgery, but didn’t provide any details about when we might see Woods on a golf course other than at the upcoming Presidents Cup, where he’ll be one of Steve Stricker’s assistant captains.

You can listen to the entire chat with Clakre below (The Tiger stuff starts at about the 23-minute mark):

The post Darren Clarke praises buddy Tiger Woods, but says he was never great at picking up dinner tabs appeared first on Golf Digest Middle East.