His raised fist in the Scottish field of Saint Andrews, his miraculous recoveries when his ball was worst placed or his memorable 'race' in the Ryder Cup are images of the memory of golf when remembering these days

Severiano Ballesteros

, promoter of this sport in Spain and one of its legends, whose death marks ten years this Friday.

On May 7, 2011, a gray and rainy day, Seve passed away at his home in his hometown, Pedreña (Cantabria), and left a void in this sport that continues to remind him ten years after his goodbye.

Near his Pedreña, on the beach of Somo, Seve began at the age of ten to hit his first blows with a 3 iron, which his brother Baldomero had made, while he was caddy at the local club.

The rest is history.

The Cantabrian golfer, who died at the age of 54 due to a brain tumor being one of the most successful in history, had time to win five 'grand' (three British Open and two Augusta Masters), as well as many other Ryder Cup and match play world championships.

But beyond the titles, Seve left with the recognition of world golf fans, especially in Great Britain, where he was an idol.

His farewell was attended by personalities from all walks of life and, from his sport, the captains of the Ryder Cup, the one for which Ballesteros fought so hard.

At the funeral, which took place in Pedreña, were

Nick Faldo

,

Ian Woosnam

,

Sam Torrance

,

Bernard Gallacher

or

Colin Montgomerie

, but also many others who had nothing to do with golf such as

Miguel Indurain

,

Michael Robinson

,

Ramón Calderón

,

Emilio Butragueño

or

Enrique Ponce

. And next to the family, because he was like his brother, was his inseparable friend and companion

José María Olazabal

.

Seve managed to get a country like Spain to exponentially increase the number of golf licenses and also for the Ryder to be held outside of Great Britain so that the entire Old Continent could enjoy it.

The first that was not played on British soil was in Valderrama (Cádiz) in 1997, and as the icing on the cake the European side was led by Ballesteros.

He also opened the way for many Spanish golfers such as

Jon Rahm

, who has recognized that the Cantabrian was decisive for him to play golf, or

Sergio García

, who remembered him when he put on the green jacket that only Masters winners wear.

Ballesteros also had time to design fields.

Some thirty tours throughout the world bear the stamp of his company Golf Course Design.

The spirit of Seve is still alive today thanks to the work of his Foundation, which honors the life and trajectory of the golfer, preserves his legacy, supports advances in cancer research and promotes golf and its values ​​among children and young people.

In addition, his story was captured thanks to a movie that was shot in 2013.

TEN YEARS AFTER HIS GOODBYE

After his death, brainstorming began to honor the legend.

The Government of Cantabria gave its name to the community's airport, the one from which Seve left with his suitcase and his bag of clubs and to which, often, he returned with a new trophy.

The Santander City Council gave him an avenue that leads to Los Peligros beach, from which his beloved Pedreña can be seen, while Marina de Cudeyo - his municipality - installed a life-size statue of the golfer.

The Association of Golf Professionals of Spain also paid tribute a couple of years ago to Seve and several professionals who play the PGA Tour circuit -which bears his name-, among which were his children Javier and Miguel, they went to the beach of Somo with his 3 iron to emulate his beginnings.

José María Olazábal remembered Seve once again on April 9, the date on which the Augusta Masters cut was passed to continue playing the weekend and which coincided with what would have been the Pedreña champion's birthday.

Dressed in navy blue and white, Seve's "war" colors every tournament Sunday, Olazábal dedicated that little personal triumph to him.

"I would be proud. What I miss on a day like today is not being able to have him here and not being able to hug us, but I think he would be happy," said his inseparable friend.

THE FAMILY, IN THE PRIVACY

On the tenth anniversary of his death, the Royal Spanish Golf Federation will broadcast a video with opinions about his legacy, with some golfers and people from that sport, while the Cantabrian Federation will not miss the occasion and will broadcast a panegyric on Ballesteros.

His family will remember him again, "as always", in privacy, organizing a mass.

And from its Foundation they assure Efe that this May 7 is a day to remember, but "it is not a sad day, because Seve would not want it to be."

Seve's right hand, his brother

Baldomero

, tells Efe that "it seems a lie that 10 years have passed since" he left.

"There has not been a single day in which I have not remembered him. I never thought that I would bury my little brother," he acknowledges.

Baldomero Ballesteros assures that Seve was "the great promoter of European and world golf and the best player in the world for two decades".

However, he regrets that for Cantabria, "unfortunately he was not a prophet", because they did not listen to him when he explained what golf could mean for the region.

"They ignored him when it came to having one or several extraordinary golf courses that would have attracted wealth in the area, taking advantage of his figure as the best player in the world," he says.

Baldomero believes that it is "a nice recognition" that the Cantabrian airport bears his name, but regrets that "not a single photo" of his brother is exhibited at the aerodrome.

"Only photographs of Real Golf de Pedreña, a club that all he did was make things difficult for him to play when he was a child, and as an adult he took advantage of his figure when he became who he was and never gave him the place he deserved" , apostille.

According to the criteria of The Trust Project

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