Seve Ballesteros

Severiano "Seve" Ballesteros was one of golf's most charismatic and influential figures, dominating the sport from the mid-1970s through the early 1990s. The Spanish legend won 90 international tournaments during his career, including five major championships: three Open Championships and two Masters titles between 1979 and 1988. He captured a record 50 European Tour victories and won at least one European Tour event for 17 consecutive years (1976–1992). Ballesteros played a pivotal role in European golf's resurgence and was instrumental in Europe's Ryder Cup success both as a player and captain.

After his playing career was curtailed by back injuries in the late 1990s, Ballesteros remained active in golf through course design work. His design portfolio includes The Heritage at Killenard in Ireland, multiple courses at Mountain Creek Golf Resort in Thailand, The Shire London layouts in England, and the Seve Ballesteros Golf Club in Japan. He also created the Seve Trophy team competition. Golf Digest named him the greatest Continental European golfer of all time in 2000. Ballesteros passed away in 2011 at age 54 after battling brain cancer.

Sources: Wikipedia article on Seve Ballesteros; course list from Course Vaults.