ONLY FOUR GOLFERS have been great enough to be referenced simply by their first name: Arnie, Jack, Tiger and Seve.
Seve Ballesteros, arguably the most talented European-born player to ever swing a golf club, passed away last Saturday after a three-year fight against brain cancer.
Ballesteros was a former World golf No. 1 and winner of two Masters green jackets and three Claret Jugs from the British Open.
His death occurred during the Spanish Open, where the European Tour marked his passing with a moment of silence during the third round at the Real Club de Golf El Prat in Barcelona.
There was an immediate call from fellow professional golfers and golf fans on Twitter for the PGA European Tour to incorporate a silhouette of Seve in its logo, much like Jerry West has been used as the unofficial official model of the NBA logo since the 1970s.
“He was the Arnold Palmer of European Golf,” Curtis Strange told the Birmingham News.
Strange called Ballesteros the backbone of Europe’s Ryder Cup teams.
“Seve loved the stage, and that was the grandest stage, where you played with a lot of emotion. He thrived on the competition.”
“The European tour would not be where it is today if not for Seve Ballesteros,” Nick Price told the Birmingham News.
“He was an icon,” Price said.
“I would say most of us would shoot a 65 and find 30 or 40 ways to do it. He had 10,000.”
“For all of us that spent time with him and played against him, it’s a very sad day.”
Pirates golf tourney
The Peninsula College Pirates Athletic Association Spring Golf Celebration will be held at Cedars at Dungeness Golf Course in Sequim on Saturday, May 21.
The two-player tourney will open with an 8:30 a.m. shotgun start.
Teams will play six holes of reverse scramble, six holes of best ball and six holes of alternate shot.
Cost is $100 per player or $200 per team of two.
Single players are welcomed and will be placed on teams by the tournament director.
The event will serve as the signature fundraising event for the Pirates Athletic Association.
Funds generated from this tournament provide scholarship opportunities to worthy student-athletes who otherwise would not have the opportunity to attend Peninsula College and represent the community in a positive way.
The day will include prizes, gift bags, interaction with Peninsula student-athletes, food and more.
Playing in the tournament will be a good way of supporting the Pirates’ NWAACC championship men’s soccer and basketball teams.
It’s been quite the year for Pirates athletics, so I urge you to go out and support the area college.
Sponsorship opportunities are available.
To play in or sponsor the event, contact head basketball coach and athletic development coordinator Lance Von Vogt at 360-417-6467 or email lvonvogt@ypencol.edu.
ESPN tourney set
SkyRidge Golf Course in Sequim will host a qualifying event for ESPN’s 10th annual National Golf Challenge, a national amateur two-person better ball tournament designed to find “America’s Best 2 Some” in gross, net and senior (net only) divisions.
This qualifier, the last of the year on the North Olympic Peninsula, will be held on Saturday, June 5.
Golfers will receive 18 holes of golf, a dozen Callway i(s) balls, an ESPN Magazine subscription and KP’s.
Cost is $60 per person and $15 per seat in a cart.
For more information, phone SkyRidge at 360-683-3673.
Poster wins award
The Port Angeles Regional Chamber of Commerce and the Olympic Medical Center Foundation can take a bow.
The poster from the $500,000 Hole In One Challenge won a gold award from the Washington Festival and Events Association for poster design.
InsideOut Solutions of Sequim designed the poster.
The graphics are used for all marketing materials to promote this fun summer golf challenge.
The $500,000 Hole In One Challenge is a joint fundraiser for the Port Angeles Regional Chamber of Commerce and also the Olympic Medical Center Foundation.
It will return this year with qualifying taking place Aug. 19-21 and Aug. 26-28 at Cedars at Dungeness Golf Course in Sequim, Peninsula Golf Club of Port Angeles and SkyRidge Golf Course of Sequim.
The finals will take place Sept. 10 at Dungeness.
For more information, visit www.portangeles.org and click on “Events.”
Ludlow memberships
Port Ludlow Golf Club has rolled out a new membership program that offers golfers a variety of options at the nine-hole Tide course and its partner, the nine-hole Timber course.
“Historically, we have only offered three different membership options,” said Vito DeSantis, director of golf at Port Ludlow Golf Club.
“Now we have almost a dozen membership types to fit anyone’s needs.”
Active military members are being rewarded with a membership that waives the invitation fee and discounts the monthly dues by 50 percent.
Also new this year is a student membership; invitation fees are waived and monthly dues are just $75 per month — from June to September — and $45 per month, from October to May.
Additionally, discounted golf rates are available to those who pre-pay golf rounds.
For more information on the new membership options at Port Ludlow, phone 360-437-0272.
Hall of Famers
The World Golf Hall of Fame recently inducted six new members, headlined by South African Ernie Els.
Other inductees were President George H.W. Bush, Jumbo Ozaki, Frank Chirkinian, Doug Ford and Jock Hutchison.
To read more about their impact on the game of golf, visit tinyurl.com/3c6wjd5.
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Michael Carman is the golf columnist for the Peninsula Daily News. He can be reached at 360-417-3527 or at pdngolf@gmail.com.