Sir Nick Faldo recently discussed his incredible experience of playing under Seve Ballesteros at the 1997 Ryder Cup.
Ballesteros was one of Europe’s greatest Ryder Cup players and was always going to become a captain one day.
The Spaniard was chosen to lead the European team at the iconic Valderrama Golf Club in his home country in 1997.
Faldo has now shared what Ballesteros was really like in the job that some might say he was born to do.
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Sir Nick Faldo tells funny Seve Ballesteros story from 1997 Ryder Cup
Seve Ballesteros won 22.5 points across eight Ryder Cup appearances, making him one of the best European players ever.
Indeed, the current European team still take inspiration from his amazing performances in the competition.
And Ballesteros would have been equally determined to perform well as a captain as he did as a player.
Nick Faldo’s funny story recalled how Ballesteros could not help but get fired up at the 1997 Ryder Cup.
“He was ludicrous,” Faldo said. “Seve was great. My story is that we all arrived at Valderrama, and we all sat down at the table in the clubhouse.
“He had melon and ham out for us, and Seve said: ‘You know Nick, I just want you all to relax and enjoy yourself. If you play good, it’s okay. If you play bad, it’s no problem. Just enjoy yourself. Have some more ham.’
“On Saturday night, ‘We have to win! Don’t three-putt, don’t hit it in a bunker, and don’t hit it in the tree right at 16.’ I was like, ‘What the hell are we picturing?'”
Sir Nick Faldo recalls ‘unbelievable’ 1997 Ryder Cup
Besides Europe’s 14.5-13.5 victory, the 1997 Ryder Cup was also known for the challenging weather conditions.
Spain is known for its beautiful weather, but the rain at Valderrama completely disrupted the schedule.
The European team were forced to spend lots of time together indoors, giving Ballesteros another opportunity to demonstrate his unique leadership.
“It was the second or third wettest day in Spain,” Faldo explained. “It chucked it down. We were in the team room at six in the morning. We sat there until midday. We played until dark.
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“We were eating and having our legs massaged at the same time. You went to bed at 11 pm and got back in the team room at 6 am. We sat there in the rain again and did it all again. It was an unbelievable week.
“Seve was all over the show. You know those silly panpipes where they take a famous song and turn it into [music]. So we’ve got this big CD of panpipes to calm us all down. ‘Get him out of the locker room.’
“As soon as he left, Billy Foster put on ‘Simply The Best’, giving it all that. Seve was doing one thing, and we were trying to do the other. But it was good fun.”
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