Ole Seve! Pro-Am gathers £618,168 for the Seve Ballesteros Foundation
Renowned golfers from both sides of the Atlantic gathered in a star studded tournament to pay tribute to the Europe’s golf legend, Seve Ballesteros, on Monday, May 23rd, and were able to raise £618,168 for the Seve Ballesteros Foundation (SBF).
The Ole Seve! Pro-Am was organized by the European Tour Chairman George O’Grady and Wentworth Club Chairman Richard Caring, and the field comprised of 24 leading players in the world as well as the Amateur players. The team championship was won by the local
hero Ross Fisher, along with his teammates Francois Joseph Fury and Steven Ho with a score of 18-under.
Ballesteros’ Ryder Cup friends and teammates Jose Maria Olazabal, Colin Montgomerie, and Retief Goosen participated in the event which saw hundreds of Ballesteros fans throng the course to honour the late golfer. Leading auctioneer Jonny Gould later took
the stage for the prize distribution ceremony and to stage an auction for several of Ballesteros’ personal belongings and other items placed for sale by the participating players.
No less than nine items were offered for sale by the players, two of them were owned by Ballesteros himself. The auction alone raised a staggering £350,000. Late champion’s Rolex Daytona fetched £65,000 and his gold ping putter, a replica of his club, with
which he won The Open Championship in 1984, fetched £55,000.
SBF has been working in close coordination with the Cancer Research UK and was set up some years back when Ballesteros first acquired the ailment. Ballesteros passed away on Saturday May 7th, at the age of 54, due to severe deterioration of a
lingering brain tumour, which he had been fighting for three years. He had undergone four surgeries and several chemotherapy sessions to curtail the tumour, only to watch it grow back again.
In 2008, the five majors champion reportedly fainted at the Madrid International Airport while boarding a flight for Germany. He kept a low profile for a very long time and finally announced his retirement with teary eyes in 2007 at the British Open Championship
inaugural ceremony.
Ballesteros’ family spokesman addressed the ceremony and paid laurels to the late champion’s contribution towards European golf.
He said, “Unfortunately, we lost a great man and a dear friend, but it is not a sad time because Seve lived life to the full. I never saw any other player with his heart and determination. He was a pioneer. He opened doors and changed the image of golf into
the truly exciting game it is today. He was a true genius. When cancer struck he had two goals – the first was never to give up and the second was to help as many people as possible.”
Ballesteros’ contribution for the research to find a cure for the dreadful disease has been appreciated by many of the surviving patients who underwent treatment by SBF.
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