Photos? Three of them.
Sentences? Two of them.
How much?
The immeasurable.
That’s what Pablo Larrazabal thought. He’s a 22-year-old pro and a nine-time winner on the DP World Tour, but he’s been falling. The 43-year-old Spaniard has made just three cuts in 14 starts this year. He has not won since May 2023. He hasn’t finished in the top 10 since March of last year. Of course, the margin between that and where he was – or where someone like Aaron Rai is now – is narrower than a blade of fairway grass.
In May, Rai broke through. He won the PGA Championship. He’s a big winner now, and on Monday, three days before the Genesis Scottish Open, Larrazabal ran into his old friend and congratulated him. He succeeded, from the age of 22 trying to find his way on the DP World Tour eight years ago, to capture the main Wanamaker Trophy. Rai then wondered how Larrazabal’s season was going.
“And he said he was struggling a bit,” Rai told DP World Tour.
“I hadn’t really checked … so I didn’t follow what the players were doing so it was the first time I heard how his season was going. And yes, I continued to practice, but it just stuck with me a little bit from what he said.
“And he’s been – obviously he’s won nine times. He’s been one of the strongest players on the DP World Tour for 15 years now. And I thought those times would be very difficult for anyone, let alone someone as successful as he is.”
Rai went to work.
He was writing a note. He can ask his brother-in-law, who is with him this week, to get pictures of Larrazabal’s medal. He put everything in the professional cabinet. Rai told the DP World Tour that several players did the same for him after winning the PGA, and he was inspired. “I thought you would read it,” Rai said, “and I didn’t think anything else would come of it.”
However, Larrazabal was confused. You might be, too.
On Thursday morning, the pro shared it on Instagram, writing: “When you get a note in your locker room from @pgachampionship winner @aaron.rai1. A true gentleman on and off the course. Thank you my friend, you still have goosebumps.” Below is the post, and below that are the words written in the note.
Pablo,
The boy in these pictures is who he is and is closer to you now than you think. Keep fighting, keep working hard and most importantly keep believing – in each match, each round and each shot.
Best wishes,
Aaron Rai
“It felt like the right thing to do,” Rai told DP World Tour.
Larrazabal thought so.
“Receiving a note like that makes me very happy that I have been doing the right things for the past 19 years,” he told DP World Tour. “And a guy like Aaron, he’s a great champion but he’s a true champion. That’s how champions should behave. If they see an opponent or a friend down, they try everything to push us up. It doesn’t matter the pictures, it’s all about what it means. Aaron is not just one of the best players in the world, he’s a true champion and I’ve been in love with this game for 40 years.
