Seve 40 Years On

[Phil Burr]

Did Seve’s posture, grip, impact position and follow-through make it seem like he trapped the ball on the clubface a fraction longer than normal?  It always appeared to me he played clubs shorter than normal and established the link between hand & ball that exemplified his genius.  How would such a genius fare at today’s Augusta?

[Ben Stephens]

Did Seve’s posture, grip, impact position and follow-through make it seem like he trapped the ball on the clubface a fraction longer than normal?  It always appeared to me he played clubs shorter than normal and established the link between hand & ball that exemplified his genius.  How would such a genius fare at today’s Augusta?

He would still win    - 10 shots ahead with 9 holes to go in 1980 and being in Rae's Creek a few times coming home and still win


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CZ1WAbhdR6o - the second shot swing is poetry in motion. Shame for the shocker at 15 which cost him the 86 Masters.


Mike Clayton said to me that Alister Mackenzie designed courses for Severiano! which I do agree with 100%

[Ben Stephens]

Did Seve’s posture, grip, impact position and follow-through make it seem like he trapped the ball on the clubface a fraction longer than normal?  It always appeared to me he played clubs shorter than normal and established the link between hand & ball that exemplified his genius.  How would such a genius fare at today’s Augusta?

He would still win    - 10 shots ahead with 9 holes to go in 1980 and being in Rae's Creek a few times coming home and still win by 4 hasn't been matched since


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CZ1WAbhdR6o - the second shot swing is poetry in motion. Shame for the shocker at 15 which cost him the 86 Masters.


Mike Clayton said to me that Alister Mackenzie designed courses for Severiano! which I do agree with 100%

[Rob Marshall]

His tee to green game was terrible at the Ryder Cup at Oak Hill in 95 but his short game was magical.

[jeffwarne]

His tee to green game was terrible at the Ryder Cup at Oak Hill in 95 but his short game was magical.

Plenty of very good tour players lose parts of their game late in their career(he was 20 plus years in by then)
The difference is they don't get picked, (or played) on grand stages.


Seve was magic in his prime and such post prime events should be purged from one's memory...

[JESII]

Certainly among the top couple of players I wish I could have seen play a great deal in their prime.

[JMEvensky]

Hoping Mike Clayton and/or Pat Burke see this and chime in.


I caddied in his group once when he was playing horribly (early 90's). He was still magical--and every single pro within walking distance came by to ask his caddie (Billy Foster?) how Seve was playing.

[Tommy Williamsen]

I loved watching Seve play more than anyone. He could turn a 75 into a 67. I remember watching him play against Montgomery at Druid's Glen in Ireland. Montgomery hit every fairway and green. I don't think Seve hit 7. He birdied most of those holes and got it up and down from everywhere. It inspired me to work on my short game.

[Jeff_Brauer]

His tee to green game was terrible at the Ryder Cup at Oak Hill in 95 but his short game was magical.

He was benched one day, and I decided to follow him around, as he practiced away from play, to avoid crowds.  One of just a few, and boy, was he wild in trying to figure it out. Not only that, but that normal explosive sound of the ball strike was much more of a "clank".  He was off, for sure. 


Of course the biggest Seve memory from that week was him always making his opponent line up short putts, only to concede just as the guy was about to stroke the ball. Not sure what he thought that bit of gamesmanship got him, but he did it.  Another was a lone Cessna flying over the opening ceremony, and Seve grabbing the mike to proclaim it was the Spanish Air Force, LOL. 




Another Seve memory was I just happened to be outside the clubhouse in Spain when he brought the trophy out. No doubt, in all the Ryder Cups I have seen, he took great joy in winning it.  Maybe the entire Euro squad takes more joy in winning it......

[Mike_Trenham]

One of my favorite golf memories happened at the 1991 Ryder Cup at Kiawah


On a par four hole early on the front nine of a foursomes match Seve was playing with Jose Maria.

[/size][size=78%]JM hit the drive and hit  a big cut and the ball rolled off the fairway into a very severe side hill lie. Seve arrived at the ball and began to survey his options and made a number of practice swings and changed clubs a number of times.  Within 40 yards of this was a 1000 year old oak tree and up in that oak tree was a number of rednecks.  Seve begins to waggle his club to get settled on how he is going to hit his shot when one of the rednecks decides to become part of the action:[/size]


Redneck (at the top of his lungs): “Seve you won’t put that ball on the green!”
Gallery: silent and aghast.
Seve: backs off the ball looks up makes direct eye contact with the redneck and points at him and say “ I will”
Gallery: fairly quiet but loving it!
Seve: with the ball about 2-2.5[/size][size=78%]feet below his toes makes a gallant slashing swing at the ball and hits a big draw that lands and stays on the green.[/size]
[/size][size=78%]Seve: points at his redneck detractor and simply says “I did”.[/size]
[/size][size=78%]Galley: erupts into euphoria with Americans high-fiving Europeans.[/size]

[Mike_Clayton]

Hoping Mike Clayton and/or Pat Burke see this and chime in.


I caddied in his group once when he was playing horribly (early 90's). He was still magical--and every single pro within walking distance came by to ask his caddie (Billy Foster?) how Seve was playing.

He was a genius as we all know who played unimaginably fascinating golf.
He just wore out after so many years of being the main man at every tournament he played outside of the US - and he played most of his golf in the 'rest of the world' A few have played better golf but none were better to watch.


And his clubs were normal length - not shorter.

[JMEvensky]

Thanks Clayts--I was hoping you'd see this thread.

[Pat Burke]

I only got to watch Seve up close a few times


There was something different about him. I did sit and watch him hit balls quite a few times and while I don’t feel like it was awe inspiring, he just moved through shots in a way that looked different. It was mentioned one time he was like a predator when he walked the course, his swing when he was practicing was more like an animal running. It just looked like he was doing what he was born to do


Watching him hit pitches and bunker shots on the practice area at New Orleans was pretty staggering though. It was like he was hitting whiffle balls and we were all using cue balls


He could just make the ball react differently. It was staggering


Young Seve IMO would still be as good if not better in this age. He was long enough and had the hands to learn any shots needed


And the new drivers just might have made him a better driver of the ball

[Rob Marshall]

Hoping Mike Clayton and/or Pat Burke see this and chime in.


I caddied in his group once when he was playing horribly (early 90's). He was still magical--and every single pro within walking distance came by to ask his caddie (Billy Foster?) how Seve was playing.

He was a genius as we all know who played unimaginably fascinating golf.
He just wore out after so many years of being the main man at every tournament he played outside of the US - and he played most of his golf in the 'rest of the world' A few have played better golf but none were better to watch.


And his clubs were normal length - not shorter.

I wonder if it wasn’t the brain tumor that just affected his game long before he found out about it. He wasn’t just a great golfer he was a great character and I mean that as a complement.

[Tom_Doak]

His tee to green game was terrible at the Ryder Cup at Oak Hill in 95 but his short game was magical.

Seve was magic in his prime and such post prime events should be purged from one's memory...

Purged?  That's one of my favorite memories of him and of any Ryder Cup match.  Someone less unflappable than Lehman would have been let all those ridiculous par saves get under their skin.  Seve was a great golfer, but one of the ultimate competitors.