Pablo Larrazábal is carrying more than competitive ambition into this week’s Estrella Damm Catalunya Championship. For the nine-time DP World Tour winner, a victory at his childhood club, Real Club de Golf El Prat, would represent one of the most meaningful achievements of his career.
The Barcelona venue welcomes the DP World Tour back after an 11-year absence, launching the European Swing in front of an enthusiastic home crowd and a strong Spanish field. For Larrazábal, however, the week carries a deeply personal dimension.
Now 43, the Spaniard reflected emotionally on the possibility of lifting a trophy in front of his wife, close friends, and his two-year-old son, Thiago, who has yet to witness his father’s success firsthand. Larrazábal’s most recent victory came at the KLM Open in 2023, capping a remarkable stretch in which he secured four titles within just over a year.
A home triumph at El Prat, where he has been a member since childhood, would complete what he described as a missing piece in his golfing journey.
The tournament also marks another important chapter in Spanish golf history. El Prat is hosting its 12th DP World Tour event, with Larrazábal having previously recorded strong finishes at the Open de España in both 2011 and 2015.
Spain’s presence this week is particularly strong, blending established champions with the country’s emerging talent. Nacho Elvira, winner of the Dubai Invitational, joins former Ryder Cup star Rafa Cabrera Bello among the headline names competing in Barcelona.
One of the most closely watched players is rising Spanish talent Ángel Ayora. The 21-year-old turned professional in 2023 and quickly established himself as one of Spain’s brightest prospects after securing his maiden professional title on the HotelPlanner Tour a year later. Since stepping onto the DP World Tour, Ayora has collected 14 top-10 finishes in just 45 starts, arriving at El Prat as one of the tournament favourites.
While the championship celebrates the strength and depth of Spanish golf, the week also carries emotional significance for the European game. Thursday marks the 15th anniversary of the passing of legendary five-time major champion Seve Ballesteros.
Ballesteros passed away during the 2011 Open de España at El Prat, and players this week are expected to honour his legacy by wearing his iconic white and navy colours. Additional tributes throughout the tournament will celebrate the immense influence he had on Spanish golf, the Ryder Cup, and European golf’s global growth.
Larrazábal spoke passionately about Ballesteros’ impact, describing him as the figure who carried Spanish and European golf onto the world stage. Having spent many summers practising at Pedreña, Ballesteros’ home course, Larrazábal recalled the lasting inspiration the Spanish icon provided to generations of players.
Ayora echoed those sentiments, describing Ballesteros as one of the defining idols of Spanish golf despite never having met him personally. Like many young Spanish professionals, he grew up studying videos of Ballesteros’ creativity, shot-making ability, and fearless approach to the game.
As the DP World Tour returns to Catalonia, this week’s championship promises more than elite competition. It stands as a celebration of Spanish golf’s heritage, its modern stars, and the enduring legacy of one of the sport’s greatest ambassadors.
About the DP World Tour
The DP World Tour is the main men’s professional golf tour of the European Tour group.
As golf’s global tour, we showcase global talent in global destinations and use our platform to build, entertain and connect our global community.
GLOBAL TALENT: We provide pathways and a platform for the leading international talent, bringing together golfing icons, national heroes and emerging stars from around the world.
GLOBAL DESTINATIONS: We stage tournaments in iconic cities and locations around the world and each week we celebrate and showcase the rich diversity of the courses, cities and cultures we visit.
GLOBAL COMMUNITY: We build, entertain and connect communities through our commitment to innovation, creative content and having a positive social and environmental impact.
Our 2026 Global Schedule features 42 tournaments in 25 different countries and comprises three distinct phases: five ‘Global Swings’, the ‘Back 9’ and the ‘DP World Tour Play-Offs’. It features five Rolex Series events – the premium category of events on the DP World Tour – and four Major Championships, all of which count towards the Race to Dubai Rankings Delivered by DP World, the Tour’s season-long competition which concludes at the DP World Tour Championship in Dubai.
DP World, the leading provider of global smart end-to-end supply chain and logistics solutions, has been the title partner of the DP World Tour since the start of the 2022 season, the Tour’s 50th season following its formation in 1972.
We also enjoy the support of many of the world’s leading business brands with DP World, Rolex, Aldar, AWS, BMW, Buffalo Trace Distillery, Emirates, Fortinet, HCL Tech, Husqvarna, Michelob ULTRA, Nexo and Vestas as Official Partners
About the DP World Tour
The DP World Tour is the main men’s professional golf tour of the European Tour group.
As golf’s global tour, we showcase global talent in global destinations and use our platform to build, entertain and connect our global community.
GLOBAL TALENT: We provide pathways and a platform for the leading international talent, bringing together golfing icons, national heroes and emerging stars from around the world.
GLOBAL DESTINATIONS: We stage tournaments in iconic cities and locations around the world and each week we celebrate and showcase the rich diversity of the courses, cities and cultures we visit.
GLOBAL COMMUNITY: We build, entertain and connect communities through our commitment to innovation, creative content and having a positive social and environmental impact.
Our 2026 Global Schedule features 42 tournaments in 25 different countries and comprises three distinct phases: five ‘Global Swings’, the ‘Back 9’ and the ‘DP World Tour Play-Offs’. It features five Rolex Series events – the premium category of events on the DP World Tour – and four Major Championships, all of which count towards the Race to Dubai Rankings Delivered by DP World, the Tour’s season-long competition which concludes at the DP World Tour Championship in Dubai.
DP World, the leading provider of global smart end-to-end supply chain and logistics solutions, has been the title partner of the DP World Tour since the start of the 2022 season, the Tour’s 50th season following its formation in 1972.
We also enjoy the support of many of the world’s leading business brands with DP World, Rolex, Aldar, AWS, BMW, Buffalo Trace Distillery, Emirates, Fortinet, HCL Tech, Husqvarna, Michelob ULTRA, Nexo and Vestas as Official Partners
About the European Tour group
The European Tour group administers the DP World Tour, the Hotel Planner Tour, the Staysure Legends Tour and the G4D Tour and, as the Managing Partner of Ryder Cup Europe LLP, stages golf’s greatest team contest, the Ryder Cup, in partnership with the PGA of America.
The European Tour group has Strategic Partnerships with the PGA TOUR, the Sunshine Tour and Challenger PGA Tour of Australasia, the China Golf Association (CGA), Japan Golf Tour Organization (JGTO), the Korea Professional Golfers’ Association (KPGA), and the TATA Steel Professional Golf Tour of India. These partnerships provide global pathways for players from across the world to compete internationally on the DP World Tour, the main men’s professional golf Tour of the European Tour group which was established in 1972, as well as the HotelPlanner Tour.
