(Provided by Tennis World USA)
The Spanish Pablo Larrazábal affirmed this Tuesday that the PGA Championship, which will begin next Thursday at the Oak Hill Country Club in Rochester, New York, is “the most difficult tournament to win in the world.”
Pablo Larrazábal, statements
“My game in theory is fine, I’ve been home for two weeks, I haven’t practiced much either because my brother got married ten days ago, and I celebrated my 40th birthday, but I’m happy to be here, to return to the most demanding championship in the world.
“, Larrazábal said in statements prior to the PGA Championship. “Here we are in the top 100 in the world and it is the most difficult tournament to win in the world. In 16 years playing on the European tour, I have been in the top 100 nine times,” he continued.
Larrazábal recognized that he faces the tournament without putting on “extra” pressure, something that helps him perform better. “This time I’m much calmer, more relaxed, seeing people I haven’t seen for a long time and enjoying myself a little more,” he said.
Pablo Larrazábal (Barcelona, May 15, 1983) is a Spanish golf professional. Pablo Larrazábal is a son of Venezuelan-born Gustavo Larrazábal, a two-time winner of the Venezuelan Open. Gustavo moved to Spain, where he won the 2008 Senior National Open and the 2009 Senior International Open.
His four children all have Spanish nationality. In 2002, Pablo caddied for his brother Alejandro at the US Masters, and realized he wanted to turn pro himself. After his school days in the United States, Larrázabal went back to Spain to take that step, but his father wanted his son to learn the value of money first and let him work in his company for two years.
In 2004, Larrázabal turned professional at the age of 21. From 2006 he played on the Challenge Tour (CT). He played eight tournaments that year and only missed one cut. In 2007, he played more tournaments and was ranked 69th on the Order of Merit.
At the end of 2007 he tied for first place at the Tour School and since 2008 he plays on the European Tour (ET). He won the Open de France and finished third at the Madrid Open. Partly because of this, he became the Sir Henry Cotton Rookie of the Year in his rookie year.
In 2011 he achieved his second victory. He finished the BMW International Open with a score of -16, just like Sergio García. A playoff followed, which he won with a birdie on the fifth hole. In 2014 at the Maybank Malaysian Open, Larrazábal was attacked by a swarm of hornets while leaving the tee of the fifth hole.
To escape the hornets, Larrazábal was forced to jump into the pond on the property. Larrazábal was found to have been stabbed more than 20 times, but still completed his hole after first being treated by a doctor.
