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Rafa Cabrera-Bello Tees it up in First Ryder Cup Appearance

September 29, 2016

If there is one man who can be classed as the epitome of consistency in the world of golf, it has to be Rafael Cabrera Bello. The Spaniard has only finished outside the top 60 in the Race to Dubai ONCE in the last seven seasons, a remarkable statistic for a golfer in his early 30’s.

It has certainly been a special year for Rafa, having played in all four major tournaments for the first time in his career, including a T17 at the Masters. The Spaniard also finished third at the 2016 WGC-Dell Match Play event, which earned him that place at the Masters and also registered a 4th place finish at the Shell Houston Open.
Therefore, Cabrera-Bello will not be new to American golf fans when he takes the proud steps onto the first tee at Hazeltine, to compete for the Ryder Cup with his European teammates, including fellow Spaniard Sergio Garcia.

Cabrera-Bello is going into the Ryder Cup full of confidence, having registered a T8 at the Dubai Duty Free Irish Open, 4th at the Open de France, T5 at the Olympic Games and T5 at the Wyndham Championship. These excellent performances have propelled him up both the European and World Ryder Cup points list and made him an automatic selection. He will be one of six rookies in the European team at Hazeltine and follows in the footsteps of Spain’s greatest players, such as Seve Ballesteros, Jose Maria Olazabal, Miguel Angel Jimenez and Sergio Garcia.

Boom!!!!!! Here we are!!!! @rydercupteameurope #teameurope #goeurope @hazeltinenational

A photo posted by Rafa Cabrera Bello (@rcabrerabello) on


Cabrera-Bello is more than happy to acknowledge the huge impact working at the David Leadbetter Golf Academy has had on his game and progression to being an automatic choice for the 2016 Ryder Cup European team. Speaking in May 2016, Cabrera-Bello commented, “David has helped me a lot with my swing and my game, and to understand my weaknesses. He’s also given very good mental strategy, and how to understand myself better as a player, and try to maximize my potential.”
Cabrera-Bello will be taking David Leadbetter’s famed ‘A Swing’ to Hazeltine this year, a swing which is becoming common place on the leaderboards of both the European and LPGA Tours. However, it is the mental side of the game, in addition to the technical side, where the Leadbetter Golf Academy shines and if there is one thing a player requires in Ryder Cup match play, it’s a strong mental edge.