David Howell: Are Rory, Day and Spieth missing that ‘Tiger spark’?

The race for the number one spot has truly become a three-horse race after Jason Day’s emphatic victory in the first of the Play-Off events, with a stunning closing 62.

We only have to go back to last year to find a time when we all thought Rory would be at the helm for years to come. Then along came Jordan, now Jason is having a pop, before them there was Adam and our own Lee and Luke – I hope first-name terms are acceptable for the men who have reached the summit of world golf.

They all came along as Tiger had lost his way of course, but it puts into perspective just what an amazing achievement it was for Tiger to be top dog for so, so long.

Only Vijay Singh interrupted his dominant position in 15 or so years. Even with the huge talent that today’s stars bring to the game, it would be a stretch of the imagination to see them emulate even a five-year stretch, lest we not forget just how incredible Tiger was in those golden years.

The attention his golf – good or bad – still gets is testimony to that and he still makes for great TV, but is he still a bigger draw than the current crop of stars?

At last week’s Wyndham Championship it was noted that Tiger’s participation had put 50,000 extra tickets on the gate. I’m sure that’s no lie, but what we don’t know is how many of those would also have turned up to watch Spieth and McIlroy – the kind of names the tournament, due to its date, has not been blessed with.

However, we can hazard a guess that people would only come out to watch the best players play well. Fifty thousand turning out to watch Tiger playing terribly and trying to put in a decent performance is another thing altogether.

His superb showing last week reminded me of one of my first PGA Championships at Wentworth, where Seve – who had struggled for some time at this point – was six-under with a few to go on day one. There was a buzz around the place akin to nothing I have felt on a Thursday since. People seemed to march out to find the great Spaniard to bring him home – this was star power at its finest. Few possess such an aura of greatness. Seve had it, Greg Norman had it, I’d say Fred Couples probably had a little bit of it, as did his good pal Payne Stewart too.

Only time will tell whether the current crop of stars will be able to emulate them. That they can play golf and win titles is not in doubt. They are playing some of the best golf the world has ever seen, but star quality is not taught or learned; it’s a gift that’s either within you or isn’t. Sport needs star characters. And when they happen to also be the best players then you end up with your golden sporting moments.

Why this column has lurched towards a Ballesteros homage I have no idea, but as I sit in front of an open fire on the last day of August, it gives me a warm glow to picture Seve punching the air on the 18th green at St Andrews in 1984. It takes a superstar mentality to react like that, with charisma by the bucket load and a joy for the game.

One of my biggest regrets was only playing against Seve once he was well past his best (how I would have loved to have been alongside him in full flow), but even that was an experience well worth having. If you wanted a life lesson in determination and focus, then 18 holes with him is all one would need.

He was also an optimist on the golf course, just like Tiger. They believed that good things would happen, even when time and again the opposite seemed to be occurring.

That two people so different would play in such a similar way is quite unusual, but I get the feeling Tiger loved the way Seve played. He was after Jack’s records, but Seve’s kind of fame.

I played with Seve perhaps a handful of times, but he left his mark on me, as he did most people.

How’s this for a back-handed compliment? After managing to beat him and Olazabal in the company of Lee Westwood for the second time in two matches, Seve said to me: “You know David, you are not a bad player for a tall man with short arms.”

Standing back-to-back with Severiano Ballesteros whilst two-time Masters Champion Jose Maria Olazabal measured our respective arm lengths will continue to go down as one of my life’s most surreal moments.

Sometimes it’s just nice to remember those that are no longer with us.

Picture Seve in the trees looking for a gap and, if you’re anything like me, I bet you are smiling.

Oh, and he was right you know; compared to him I did have short arms.

Tagged David Howell, Seve, Seve Ballesteros, Tiger Woods