Garcia wins Valderrama Masters title

Sergio Garcia won the Andalucia Valderrama Masters for a second successive year on Monday, catapulting himself up to 25th place in the Race to Dubai rankings.

Garcia closed with a two-under 69 in his interrupted final round on Monday, after bad weather over the weekend forced organisers to cut the tournament to 54 holes and delay the finish by a day.

The 38-year-old struck 68 in his opening round and stormed into the outright lead with an errorfree 64 before his efforts on Monday saw him end on 12-under for the tournament and four shots clear of Ireland’s Shane Lowry, who finished second.

“It’s amazing to be able to win here at Valderrama three times, it’s a dream come true,” said Garcia, who also won the title in 2011.

The victory lifted him from 41st to 25th in the Race to Dubai standings.

“It’s so difficult. This golf course is so challenging and for me to be able to go out there in the conditions we played in all week and shoot three rounds under par means a lot.”

Lowry carded a 66 in his final round to finish in second place, with Finland’s Mikko Korhonen two shots further behind in third.

With the tournament not having been staged from 2012 to 2016, Garcia is the first player to win the same tournament three times in a row in Europe since Colin Montgomerie won the PGA Championship from 1998 to 2000.