Rafa Cabrera Bello ended a four-year wait for his fourth European Tour victory after beating fellow Spaniard Adri Arnaus in a play-off to at the ACCIONA Open de España presented by Madrid.
The 37-year-old from Las Palmas entered the final day with a two-shot lead but had lost it by the second tee and was two behind Arnaus at the turn after a battling front nine. A hat-trick of birdies from the 13th had him back in a share of the lead at 19 under, and he produced a stunning up-and-down from the sand on the last after a ragged tee shot to save his par and take the contest to extra holes after a closing 69.
Both men sent their tee shots left on the first trip back up the 18th, but Cabrera Bello had the better lie and put his approach to 11 feet to seal a birdie and the win.
Speaking after picking up his coveted national open trophy, Cabrera Bello was without a worldwide top-10 finish since January, said: “I came here in probably the worst shape I have been in in the last decade, so to come out of here with a win is incredible. I’ve always dreamed about holding this trophy and its been on my bucket list ever since I turned professional, so to see my name alongside all those former champions is very special.
“This week I’ve trusted myself again, and found a way to believe in myself. I’ve had the amazing support from the crowd all week and that really helped me keep going. I just fought as hard as I know until the end, and I got the little bit of luck I needed in the play-off.”
Arnaus carded a closing 67, but was left to reflect on a fourth runner-up finish in 72 European Tour starts.
Grant Forrest came home in 28 to finish two shots out of the play-off at 17 under alongside Julien Guerrier and Shubhankar Sharma. Wil Besseling, Wilco Nienaber and Jack Senior were at 16 under, a shot clear of Richard Bland, Renato Paratore and Marc Warren.
World No 1 Jon Rahm carded a closing 69 to finish six shots off the pace in tied-17th as his bid for a third consecutive win at this event fell short.