Meet Larrazabal: Energetic Spanish star

Even though he hasn't enjoyed a particularly successful season so far and hadn't had the chance to play the re-designed West Course at Wentworth, ahead of this week's BMW PGA Championship, no one at the FootJoy gathering at Bearwood Lakes on Monday was happier than Spaniard Pablo Larrazabal.

Dressed in the distinctive red and yellow of his home nation, the energetic 2008 French Open was walking on cloud nine because the previous night his beloved Barcelona Football Club had won the Spanish La Liga.

"I am very, very happy," he laughed as he showed me some putting tips we're later going to share with Golfmagic members. "I am a big big fan of Barcelona. I live in the city and it is very important for us to win this championship."

He also revealed he is good friends with one of the club's best players, the Spanish international midfielder Andres Iniesta.

"We were at school together when I was playing junior tournaments aged 13,14 and 15. The school was the same that my grandmother went to 70 years ago just a kilometre from the Nou Camp stadium.

"It is where good sporting children go to study and where Victor Valdez, the Barcelona goalkeeper and Pepe Reina, the Liverpool goalkeeper were at school, one year above me," revealed Larrazabal, who also attended his final year at High School in the US and is himself a very talented footballer.

Brother of Alejandro Larrazabal who won the British Amateur in 2002, Pablo had his eyes firmly set on a pro career after caddieing for his brother in the 2003 US Masters. but his Venezuelan-born father had other ideas. The former World Cup golfer insisted his son go to work on the family fish farm to learn and understand the value of money as well as a day's hard labour.

He eventually claimed his place on Tour from the 2007 Tour School, pre-qualified for the French Open and won it by holding off the challenges of Angel Cabrera, Colin Montgomerie and Lee Westwood. He went on to be crowned Sir Henry Cotton rookie of the Year

Pablo now considers himself a 'feel' player - preferring not to think too much about technique - but has some fascinating views on ball position and putting he will share with Golfmagic members over the next few weeks.

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