Sunday 1 February 2015 12:33, UK
Alvaro Quiros defied a mammoth round trip and nasal surgery to fire his best round since 2013 and make a superb hole-in-one on the final day of the Omega Dubai Desert Classic.
The big-hitting Spaniard has been battling a sinus problem for the last few months and he suffered a series of nose-bleeds at last week's Qatar Masters, forcing him to play with tissues wedged in his nostrils and a clamp on the bridge of his nose.
Despite the discomfort, Quiros managed to close with a four-under 68 in Doha and earn a share of 23rd place, and he then decided to fly back to Spain for an operation.
The 32-year-old arrived in Dubai on Tuesday afternoon, and he made the cut with nothing to spare after following an opening-day 73 with a three-under 69.
We didn't know it was in the hole until I walked onto the green. That's what happens when you don't play that good in the first three rounds and they put you out early!
A third-round 70 left him among the also-rans, but he vaulted up the leaderboard on Sunday as he carded a flawless eight-under 64 to finish on 12 under par - igniting his charge with an ace at the 188-yard fourth hole.
It was the second career ace at The Emirates for Quiros, who made a hole-in-one at the 11th in 2011 which proved pivotal in helping him clinch a one-shot victory over James Kingston and Anders Hansen.
"Anthony Wall was hitting before me and we saw the ball land a metre away from the hole and when I hit my shot, a three-quarter eight-iron, we saw the ball pitch but didn't see the ball," Quiros said of his moment of magic at the fourth.
Early start
"Because there were no people around, given we were out early this morning, and also the sun was into our faces so we didn't know it was in the hole until I walked onto the green.
"That's what happens when you don't play that good in the first three rounds and they put you out early, so there was no people to clap! But the hole-in-one brought back good memories of my hole-in-one in winning here four years ago."
Quiros revealed he took the decision to fly home for nasal surgery last week as the nose-bleeds had also caused him to experience difficulties breathing.
"I had to fly back from Qatar to Spain on Saturday night after the event and I had nasal surgery on Sunday, and I left Spain on Tuesday and arrived here in Dubai Tuesday afternoon," he added.
"I was just struggling to breathe properly and that's why my nose was bleeding so much. I am still having a lot of liquid coming out of my nose but the bleeding has stopped."
Quiros will now head to the Maybank Malaysian Open with renewed confidence after his sparkling final round in Dubai, following his hole-in-one with six birdies.
"This is my lowest score in maybe 15 months since I played the 2013 KLM Open," he said. "So I am now excited to get back to playing the golf I know I can play."
