Personal

Nicknamed "El Gato" (The Cat) because of the way he stealthily stalks and overcomes opponents...Son of a club professional in Cordoba, where he still lives...Used his own money to help sponsor friend and 2007 U.S. Open champion Angel Cabrera on the European Tour and was rewarded when Cabrera won the 2001 Argentine Open and followed that with a victory in the 2002 Benson & Hedges International Open...Favorite courses are Augusta National GC, Pebble Beach GL and Crans-sur-Sierre in Switzerland...Is a good friend of fellow Champions Tour player Vicente Fernandez...Favorite athlete is Manu Ginobili of the San Antonio Spurs...Likes to watch soccer as well as tennis and polo...Started a charity foundation in Argentina to assist underprivileged children...Enjoys Argentinean steak cooked on his barbecue at home...Likes Argentine folk music...Favorite book is The Da Vinci Code and his favorite city is London...Attributes some of his recent success to improved concentration, thanks to the study of an Indian yoga technique, Rhami Hayat...Went into the Army when he was 20 and served a two-year hitch. There was a military coup during his service, and he remembers patrolling the tense streets of Buenos Aires, gun in hand. Also fought guerrillas in isolated sections of northern Argentina.