Rafa Cabrera Bello, who finished second to Jon Rahm in the last edition of the tournament, will be one of Spain’s biggest hopes at the ACCIONA Open de España presented by Madrid, which takes place at Club de Campo Villa de Madrid from 7 to 10 October with an outstanding field.
A pro since 2005, Rafa Cabrera Bello has been one of Spain’s leading players for many seasons, thanks to both consistently good results throughout the years and his well-known commitment to the sport.
A Ryder Cup player in 2016, Rafa Cabrera-Bello once again joins Jon Rahm at an Open de España, where the two players shared some stunning moments in 2018 and 2019, particularly the latter, where they battled to the end for a victory that would eventually give the Basque player his second title at the event in as many years.
The Canary Islander’s relationship with the Open de España dates back to 2002 when, as an amateur, he produced a sensational fourth-place finish in an event that was won by Sergio Garcia at El Cortijo on Gran Canaria. Playing on a special invitation, Rafa Cabrera Bello produced an extraordinary performance that culminated a prolific period of his sporting life during which he accumulated every title from Under-10 to Under-18 level at the Campeonato de España.
Once he had turned professional, two wins on the Challenge Tour –the Man NO Open Challenge in 2006 and the 2008 Suisse Challenge – paved the way for three more on the European Tour –the Austrian Open in 2009, the Omega Dubai Desert Classic in 2012 and the 2017 Scottish Open – before contributing to Europe’s win at the 2018 Eurasia Cup. It is a career replete with success stories that makes him one of the biggest attractions at this year’s ACCIONA Open de España presented by Madrid.
“The Open de España is undoubtedly the biggest victory a young Spaniard can dream of. This tournament is truly thrilling, for all Spanish golfers this is our major”, he said in 2018 before playing at the Centro Nacional de Golf, where his group with Jon Rahm was followed by hundreds of fans at an event where he finished sixth in 2009 and eleventh in 2011, at PGA Catalunya and RCG El Prat, respectively.
A year later, in October 2019, he produced his best finish at an Open de España, joining Jon Rahm on the podium at Club de Campo Villa de Madrid in a sporting spectacle that could be repeated in just a few days.