Remembering Seve on his birthday
Seve (left) John Lister and myself in Rotorua exhibition 1977
This weekend marks the 69th birthday of the great Seve Ballesteros, and during my caddying days, I was fortunate to have caddied against him on two occasions in head-to-head matches.
One was caddying for American Jim Colbert at Turnberry in 1975 when Colbert beat the then 18-year-old in the Double Diamond Teams matches.
The other was when caddying for New Zealander John Lister in an exhibition match against Seve in Rotorua, New Zealand, in 1977 (see picture below), when Lister would defeat the man who had just won three tournaments in a row (two in Japan and one in Dunedin).
I might not have realised it at the time, but I was in the presence of greatness, and looking back now, I feel very proud and privileged to have witnessed him up close and personal.
