Pablo Larrazabal
Encyclopedia
Pablo Larrazábal is a Spanish
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...

 professional golfer
Professional golfer
In golf the distinction between amateurs and professionals is rigorously maintained. An amateur who breaches the rules of amateur status may lose his or her amateur status. A golfer who has lost his or her amateur status may not play in amateur competitions until amateur status has been reinstated;...

 currently playing on the European Tour.

Larrazábal was born in Barcelona, Spain. He attended high school in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

 and returned to Spain in 2002 with the intention of turning professional but his father made him work on the family fish farm to understand the value of money. He eventually turned professional in 2004.

2006–2007: Challenge Tour

Larrazábal played in 8 events on the Challenge Tour
Challenge Tour
The Challenge Tour is the second tier men's professional golf tour in Europe. It is operated by the PGA European Tour and as with on the main European Tour and the European Seniors Tour, some of the events are played outside of Europe...

 in 2006 and made 7 cuts. His best finish came at the Vodafone Challenge
Vodafone Challenge
The Vodafone Challenge was a golf tournament on the Challenge Tour from 2006 to 2008. It was played at Golf & Country Club An der Elfrather Mühle in Düsseldorf, Germany....

 where he was tied for seventh, his only top ten finish of the year. He earned €7,160 on the year and finished 138th on the money list.

Larrazábal played in 17 events in 2007 and made 10 cuts while recording two top 10 finishes and six top 25 finishes. His best finish came at the Postbank Challenge
Postbank Challenge
The Postbank Challenge was a golf tournament on the Challenge Tour that was played in 2007 at Golfclub Mülheim an der Ruhr near Mülheim, Germany. It was hosted by European Tour player Marcel Siem.-Winners:-External links:*...

 where he finished in fourth. He earned €21,596 on the year and finished 69th on the money list. Larrazábal finished in a tie for sixth at Q-School and earned his card for the European Tour's 2008 season.

2008: Sir Henry Cotton Rookie of the Year and first European Tour title

In his rookie season on tour, Larrazábal played in 28 events and made 17 cuts. Larrazábal won his first title on the European Tour at the Open de France
Open de France
The Open de France is a European Tour golf tournament. Inaugurated in 1906 it is the oldest national open in Continental Europe and has been part of the European Tour's schedule since the tour's inception in 1972....

 where he led after all four rounds. He also had an impressive finish at the Madrid Masters
Madrid Masters
There are two sporting events named the Madrid Masters:*Mutua Madrileña Madrid Open — a men's and women's tennis tournament*Madrid Masters...

 where he finished in third. Larrazábal recorded three top 10 finishes and 7 top 25 finishes. He finished in 18th on the Order of Merit, earning €960,858. This propelled him to the Sir Henry Cotton Rookie of the Year award.

2009–2010: Inconsistency and struggle for form

Larrazábal had an inconsistent year in 2009 on the European Tour, with only a single top ten finish, and three top 25 finishes. He finished ranked 86th on the inaugural Race to Dubai. The following season was not much better for Larrazábal, making 18 of 31 cuts and finishing in the top ten on three occasions. He earned €332,500 in the 2010 season and finished 88th in the Race to Dubai standings.

2011: Improved form and second European Tour win

Larrazábal started the 2011 season in good form with a fifth place finish in India at the Avantha Masters
Avantha Masters
The Avantha Masters is a professional golf tournament on the European and Asian Tours. It was a new tournament for 2010, and marked the European Tour's return to India following the cancellation of the Indian Masters in 2009....

 before finishing third in his home country's national tournament, the Open de España
Open de España
The Open de España is the national open golf championship of Spain. It was founded in 1912 and has been part of the European Tour's schedule since the inception of the Tour in 1972. Except for a five year period in the early 1980s, the tournament has been played in April or May. In 2005 it was one...

 finishing three strokes behind the winner Thomas Aiken
Thomas Aiken
Thomas Edward Aiken is a South African professional golfer who plays on the European Tour.Following a successful amateur career, which included being named the South African Amateur of the Year in 2001, Aiken turned professional at the start of 2002. In 2004, he won three times on the Sunshine...

. A month later he finished fourth at the Saab Wales Open shooting a 67 during the final round to move through the field and into the top five. In June 2011, Larrazábal won his second European Tour title at the BMW International Open
BMW International Open
The BMW International Open is an annual men's professional golf tournament on the European Tour. Founded in 1989, it has always been held in and around BMW's home city of Munich, Germany, and since 1997 has been played at the Golfclub München Eichenried....

 in Munich
Munich
Munich The city's motto is "" . Before 2006, it was "Weltstadt mit Herz" . Its native name, , is derived from the Old High German Munichen, meaning "by the monks' place". The city's name derives from the monks of the Benedictine order who founded the city; hence the monk depicted on the city's coat...

 beating compatriot Sergio García
Sergio García
Sergio García Fernández is a Spanish professional golfer who plays on both the United States PGA Tour and the European Tour. He has spent much of his career in the top 10 of the Official World Golf Rankings...

 in a sudden death playoff. Both men entered the final round trailing by two strokes, but fired rounds of 68 to finish on sixteen under par. Larrazábal had a putt to win outright at the 72nd hole but that slipped by, allowing García to birdie the last to take them into a playoff. After both players made birdies at the 18th, on the first and second playoff holes, they advanced to the par three 12th and the par three 17th, where Larrazábal let two more ten footers slide by for the championship. However at the fifth extra hole, the par five 18th, García ran his eagle putt four feet past, with Larrazábal two feet away in three. García's birdie putt then lipped out and Larrazábal holed out for victory.

This win came three weeks after Larrazábal had missed out in a playoff himself in an Open Championship
The Open Championship
The Open Championship, or simply The Open , is the oldest of the four major championships in professional golf. It is the only "major" held outside the USA and is administered by The R&A, which is the governing body of golf outside the USA and Mexico...

 qualifier at Sunningdale, but the win has ensured himself of a place at the 2011 Open Championship
2011 Open Championship
The 2011 Open Championship was the 140th Open Championship, played from July 14–17 at Royal St George's Golf Club in Sandwich, Kent, England. Darren Clarke of Northern Ireland won the event by three strokes for his first major championship victory.-Venue:...

 at Royal St. George's.

European Tour wins (2)

No. Date Tournament Winning Score Margin of
Victory
Runner-up
1 29 Jun 2008
2008 European Tour
The 2008 European Tour was the 37th golf season since the European Tour officially began in 1972. The 2008 season consisted of 50 official money events, a drop of two from the previous year. This included seven major championships and World Golf Championships, which are also sanctioned by the PGA...

Open de France ALSTOM -15 (65–70–67–67=269) 4 strokes   Colin Montgomerie
Colin Montgomerie
Colin Stuart Montgomerie, OBE is a Scottish professional golfer, often referred to by one of his nicknames 'Monty'. He has had one of the finest careers in European Tour history, having won a record eight Order of Merit titles, including a streak of seven consecutively from 1993 to 1999, and 31...

2 26 Jun 2011
2011 European Tour
The 2011 European Tour will be the third edition of the Race to Dubai and the 40th season of golf tournaments since the European Tour officially began in 1972.-Schedule:...

BMW International Open
BMW International Open
The BMW International Open is an annual men's professional golf tournament on the European Tour. Founded in 1989, it has always been held in and around BMW's home city of Munich, Germany, and since 1997 has been played at the Golfclub München Eichenried....

-16 (68–67–69–68=272) Playoff   Sergio García
Sergio García
Sergio García Fernández is a Spanish professional golfer who plays on both the United States PGA Tour and the European Tour. He has spent much of his career in the top 10 of the Official World Golf Rankings...



European Tour playoff record (1–0)
No.YearTournamentOpponent(s)Result
1 2011 BMW International Open
BMW International Open
The BMW International Open is an annual men's professional golf tournament on the European Tour. Founded in 1989, it has always been held in and around BMW's home city of Munich, Germany, and since 1997 has been played at the Golfclub München Eichenried....

  Sergio García
Sergio García
Sergio García Fernández is a Spanish professional golfer who plays on both the United States PGA Tour and the European Tour. He has spent much of his career in the top 10 of the Official World Golf Rankings...

Won with birdie on the fifth extra hole; García made par

Results in major championships

Tournament 2008 2009 2010 2011
The Masters DNP DNP DNP DNP
U.S. Open
U.S. Open (golf)
The United States Open Championship, commonly known as the U.S. Open, is the annual open golf tournament of the United States. It is the second of the four major championships in golf, and is on the official schedule of both the PGA Tour and the European Tour...

DNP DNP DNP DNP
The Open Championship
The Open Championship
The Open Championship, or simply The Open , is the oldest of the four major championships in professional golf. It is the only "major" held outside the USA and is administered by The R&A, which is the governing body of golf outside the USA and Mexico...

T70 CUT DNP T30
PGA Championship
PGA Championship
The PGA Championship is an annual golf tournament conducted by the PGA of America as part of the PGA Tour. It is one of the four major championships in men's professional golf, and is the golf season's final major, usually played in mid-August, customarily four weeks after The Open Championship...

CUT DNP DNP T45


DNP = Did not play

CUT = missed the half-way cut

"T" = tied

Yellow background for top-10.

Team appearances

Amateur
  • Eisenhower Trophy
    Eisenhower Trophy
    The Eisenhower Trophy is a biennial world amateur team golf championship for men organized by the International Golf Federation. It is named for Dwight D. Eisenhower, the President of the United States when the tournament was first played, who was a keen amateur golfer. Recent tournaments have...

     (representing Spain): 2000


Professional
  • World Cup (representing Spain): 2008
    2008 Omega Mission Hills World Cup
    The 2008 Omega Mission Hills World Cup took place from November 27 to November 30 at Mission Hills Golf Club in Shenzhen, China. It was the 54th World Cup. 28 countries competed and each country sent two players. The team purse was $5,000,000 with $1,600,000 going to the winner. The Swedish team of...

  • Royal Trophy
    Royal Trophy
    The Royal Trophy is a men's professional team golf tournament which was played for the first time in January 2006 at the Amata Spring Country Club in Chonburi, Thailand. The competing teams represent Europe and Asia. Eight man teams play a series of 16 matches involving foursomes, four-ball and...

     (representing Europe): 2009
    2009 Royal Trophy
    The 2009 Royal Trophy was the third edition of The Royal Trophy, a team golf event contested between teams representing Asia and Europe. It was held from 9–11 January at the Amata Spring Country Club in Thailand...

  • Seve Trophy
    Seve Trophy
    The Seve Trophy is a biennial golf tournament between teams of professional male golfers representing Great Britain & Ireland and Continental Europe. It is named after five times major winner Seve Ballesteros, the most successful golfer ever from Continental Europe who was one of the key...

     (representing Continental Europe): 2011
    2011 Vivendi Seve Trophy
    The 2011 Vivendi Seve Trophy, formerly known as the Seve Trophy, was played 15-18 September at Golf de Saint-Nom-la-Bretèche in France. The team captain for Great Britain and Ireland was Paul McGinley, with the captain for Continental Europe being Jean van de Velde...


External links

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