MADRID - Spanish golf legend Severiano Ballesteros, one of golf's all-time greats who lifted five majors and turned a new generation on to the sport, died on Saturday aged 54.

"Seve Ballesteros died at 2:10 am, surrounded by his family, in his home in Pedrena", in northwestern Spain, following "respiratory failure," his family said in a statement.

Ballesteros was a charismatic figure who led the European challenge to the decades-long supremacy of the United States.