Rafael Cabrera-Bello
Encyclopedia
Rafael Cabrera-Bello is a Spanish
professional
golf
er.
. He first played golf aged six and went on to enjoy a successful amateur career, winning the Spanish National Championship at every age group level from under-7 through under-18. In 2002, as a 17-year-old amateur, he finished in a tie for fourth at the Open de Espana, a European Tour event. He turned professional at the age of 20 in 2005, having narrowly missed out obtaining a European Tour card at final qualifying school
. His performance did ensure a place for the second tier Challenge Tour
.
In a successful first season Cabrera-Bello recorded his maiden professional victory, at the MAN NÖ Open
in Austria. He finished the season 13th in the Tour rankings, earning him a place on the following year's European Tour. He struggled during his rookie season in 2007, failing to finish better than tied for 18th in any tournament as he finished outside the top 200 on the Order of Merit. He failed to regain his playing status at the end of season qualifying school and returned to the Challenge Tour for 2008. His second professional victory came in the 2008 Credit Suisse Challenge
, and he ended the year by once again earning graduation to the main tour, finishing 14th in the rankings.
Cabrera-Bello's second season of European Tour golf proved far more successful. In his first eleven events, he missed only one cut, finishing in the top 10 on four occasions and the top 20 a further five times. After such a promising start to the season he suffered a slump in form, making only 2 of his next 10 cuts. However, he bounced back in dramatic style at the Austrian Open in September. Lying nine shots off the lead after the first two rounds, he recorded a third round 66 to move up the leaderboard, before firing a record-equalling 11-under-par final round of 60 to claim victory by one shot ahead of Benn Barham
, who had led for the entire tournament. His performance equalled the record for any round on the European Tour, and was only the third time a player had carded a final round 60 to win a tour event.
LA = Low Amateur
DNP = did not play
CUT = missed the half way cut
"T" indicates a tie for a place.
Yellow background for top-10.
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
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;...
golf
Golf
Golf is a precision club and ball sport, in which competing players use many types of clubs to hit balls into a series of holes on a golf course using the fewest number of strokes....
er.
Career
Cabrera-Bello was born in Las Palmas, Gran CanariaGran Canaria
Gran Canaria is the second most populous island of the Canary Islands, with a population of 838,397 which constitutes approximately 40% of the population of the archipelago...
. He first played golf aged six and went on to enjoy a successful amateur career, winning the Spanish National Championship at every age group level from under-7 through under-18. In 2002, as a 17-year-old amateur, he finished in a tie for fourth at the Open de Espana, a European Tour event. He turned professional at the age of 20 in 2005, having narrowly missed out obtaining a European Tour card at final qualifying school
Qualifying school
In professional golf the term qualifying school is used for the annual qualifying tournaments for leading golf tours such as the U.S. based PGA and LPGA Tours and the European Tour. A fixed number of players in the event win membership of the tour for the following season, otherwise known as a...
. His performance did ensure a place for the second tier 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 a successful first season Cabrera-Bello recorded his maiden professional victory, at the MAN NÖ Open
MAN NÖ Open
The MAN NÖ Open was a men's professional golf tournament held in Austria. It was founded in 2004 as an event on the third tier Alps Tour, before moving up to the second tier Challenge Tour in 2006, replacing the Austrian Open, which had been promoted to the full European Tour schedule. It was...
in Austria. He finished the season 13th in the Tour rankings, earning him a place on the following year's European Tour. He struggled during his rookie season in 2007, failing to finish better than tied for 18th in any tournament as he finished outside the top 200 on the Order of Merit. He failed to regain his playing status at the end of season qualifying school and returned to the Challenge Tour for 2008. His second professional victory came in the 2008 Credit Suisse Challenge
Credit Suisse Challenge
The Credit Suisse Challenge is a golf tournament on the Challenge Tour, held in Switzerland. It was first played as the Credit Suisse Private Banking Open in 2000 and 2001 at the Golf Club Patriziale Ascona in Ascona. Following a four year hiatus, the tournament returned in 2006 and was held at the...
, and he ended the year by once again earning graduation to the main tour, finishing 14th in the rankings.
Cabrera-Bello's second season of European Tour golf proved far more successful. In his first eleven events, he missed only one cut, finishing in the top 10 on four occasions and the top 20 a further five times. After such a promising start to the season he suffered a slump in form, making only 2 of his next 10 cuts. However, he bounced back in dramatic style at the Austrian Open in September. Lying nine shots off the lead after the first two rounds, he recorded a third round 66 to move up the leaderboard, before firing a record-equalling 11-under-par final round of 60 to claim victory by one shot ahead of Benn Barham
Benn Barham
Benn Barham is an English professional golfer on the European Tour.Barham was born in Ashford, Kent. He has won two tournaments on the second tier Challenge Tour, the 2001 NCC Open and the 2005 Open Mahou de Madrid...
, who had led for the entire tournament. His performance equalled the record for any round on the European Tour, and was only the third time a player had carded a final round 60 to win a tour event.
European Tour wins (1)
| No. | Date | Tournament | Winning Score | Margin of Victory | Runner-up |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 20 Sep 2009 2009 European Tour The 2009 European Tour was the 38th series of golf tournaments since the European Tour officially began in 1972. There were major changes for the 2009 season as the tour entered a partnership agreement with Dubai based Leisurecorp... |
Austrian Golf Open | 1 stroke |  Benn BarhamBenn Barham Benn Barham is an English professional golfer on the European Tour.Barham was born in Ashford, Kent. He has won two tournaments on the second tier Challenge Tour, the 2001 NCC Open and the 2005 Open Mahou de Madrid... |
Challenge Tour wins (2)
| No. | Date | Tournament | Winning Score | Margin of Victory |
Runner-up |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 23 Jul 2006 2006 Challenge Tour The 2006 Challenge Tour was a series of golf tournaments known as the Challenge Tour, the official development tour run by the PGA European Tour. The tour was started as the Satellite Tour in 1986 and was renamed the Challenge Tour ready for the start of the 1990 season.The Challenge Tour Rankings... |
MAN NÖ Open MAN NÖ Open The MAN NÖ Open was a men's professional golf tournament held in Austria. It was founded in 2004 as an event on the third tier Alps Tour, before moving up to the second tier Challenge Tour in 2006, replacing the Austrian Open, which had been promoted to the full European Tour schedule. It was... |
2 strokes |  Niki Zitny |
|
| 2 | 13 Jul 2008 2008 Challenge Tour The 2008 Challenge Tour was a series of golf tournaments known as the Challenge Tour, the official development tour run by the PGA European Tour... |
Credit Suisse Challenge Credit Suisse Challenge The Credit Suisse Challenge is a golf tournament on the Challenge Tour, held in Switzerland. It was first played as the Credit Suisse Private Banking Open in 2000 and 2001 at the Golf Club Patriziale Ascona in Ascona. Following a four year hiatus, the tournament returned in 2006 and was held at the... |
2 strokes | Gary Lockerbie Gary Lockerbie Gary Lockerbie is an English professional golfer.Lockerbie was born in Penrith, Cumbria. He had a successful amateur career, including wins in the English Amateur and the Lytham Trophy, before turning professional after representing Great Britain and Ireland in the 2005 Walker Cup.In his first... |
Results in major championships
| Tournament | 2010 |
|---|---|
| The Masters | 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... |
T47 |
| 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... |
DNP |
| 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... |
DNP |
LA = Low Amateur
DNP = did not play
CUT = missed the half way cut
"T" indicates a tie for a place.
Yellow background for top-10.