Nacho Elvira started the day at the Dubai Invitational with a two-shot lead and ended it with a one-shot lead to claim his third career DP World Tour title. This is his first win since 2024 at the Soudal Open.
Elvira took complete control of the tournament, opening with a three-shot lead after a birdie on the seventh hole in the fourth round. But two poor chip shots on holes eight and nine led to back-to-back bogeys and dropped him to a five-way tie atop the leaderboard. He found the water on the 10th hole but still saved par after making an 8-foot par putt.
Shane Lowry was looking to set the clubhouse lead at 10-under after teeing off on the 18th tee. But his bunker shot found the water and led to a double bogey to drop him to 8-under and out of the running. He would finish in a four-way tie for third place with Rory McIlroy, David Puig and Julien Guerrier.
Daniel Hillier set the clubhouse lead at 9-under after making two birdies and an eagle on the back nine. However, he came up just short.
Elvira holed a 7-foot putt on the 17th hole to get to 10-under and a one-shot lead with one hole to play. On the 18th, he tapped in for par and a final round 69 to secure his victory.
After his final round Elvira had this to say about his early season win:
“Feels unusual. I mean, I’ve always been a slow starter at the beginning of the season. So, to get a win at the beginning of the season like this is unusual, and on a course like this, I love it. When we came here two years ago, I fell in love with it. I think it’s a fantastic course, a fantastic venue, and I couldn’t be more happy to be honest.”
The DP World Tour stays in the United Arab Emirates for the Hero Dubai Desert Classic where Tyrrell Hatton is the defending champion. This event is the first of five Rolex Series events on the schedule.
