Like millions of other people across Europe I’ve spent the last two days hanging on every last drop of emotion and drama that has made the Seve Trophy such compulsive viewing.
As something you’re likely to hear down the pub tonight that probably ranks alongside: “I see Ben Crenshaw’s become an atheist.â€
It’s a shame that the tournament has failed to capture the public’s imagination – and make no mistake, that more people turned up at the National Ploughing Championship on Thursday condemns this year’s instalment to failure – but now might be the time to call it quits.
True the tournament had its moment of pre event controversy and Marc Warren’s bizarre chandelier related accident is already the stuff of legend. But really this is a damp squib of an event.
It is notoriously difficult, in a crowded sporting calendar, to fashion an event of thin air. History and heritage add to the mystique of sporting events. Hitching Seve’s name to the tournament may have been a way of circumventing this problem: filling the pedigree vacuum by flying in a living, breathing legend.
It hasn’t worked. The top players haven’t shown up. The rivalry that makes the Ryder Cup so special doesn’t exist between players that are formidable team mates in the combined European team.
The attraction of Seve having a matchplay event of his own is clear but his amazing feats came against the US not a Great Britain and Ireland hybrid. And Continental Europe as a single entity exists only in the minds of Eurosceptic Tory backbenchers.
Seve deserves a trophy – if Bob Hope can be immortalised with a golf tournament then Seve is more than qualified – but not this one. A different format may help. A permanent venue – Spain being the obvious choice – would also help.
How best to mark Seve’s incredible achievements in tournament form is not going to be easily solved. But, after this week, we can at least rule out the Seve Trophy as it is now as a fitting tribute to the great man.
You are right….as I write, I am watching Casey, who is playing what might politely be called, RUBBISH….
Even Seve has just run ove one of his own players golf balls in his buggy…..None of them are really interested. Faldo looks bored!!
Are they being payed a vast sum for this ?:oops: