GOLF:THE SPANISH flag will fly at the Players Championship in Florida this week in memory of Seve Ballesteros.
One of the rewards for winning the tournament at Sawgrass is to have your national flag flying over the Circle of Champions a year later, but the South African flag commemorating Tim Clark’s victory last May has been replaced.
Instead Spain’s national flag will remain until Sunday, the day a new champion is crowned.
At the nearby World Golf Hall of Fame, the Spanish flag has been lowered to half-mast, a framed photo of Ballesteros placed in the box office and a black ribbon put on his locker door.
An announcement on the last three players taking part in next week’s Volvo World Matchplay Championship in Spain has been delayed until after the funeral of Ballesteros on Wednesday.
One spot has to be filled from Asia, one from Australasia and one from the world rankings to complete the 24-man line-up competing for a first prize of €800,000 – the second biggest in Europe this year after the Open Championship.
Six of the world’s current top seven – Lee Westwood, Martin Kaymer, Luke Donald, Graeme McDowell, Rory McIlroy and Paul Casey – are in the field, as are Masters champion Charl Schwartzel, and Ian Poulter.
