Yurav Premlall stormed to a stunning victory as he claimed his maiden DP World Tour win at  the Estrella Damm Catalunya Championship with a score of 28 under par, 14 strokes ahead of his compatriot Shaun Norris and 15 ahead of Alejandro del Rey, the top-placed Spaniard at the Real Club de Golf El Prat.

No one could keep up with the South African, who played flawlessly over the weekend, as reflected in some of his performance figures: 20 birdies and just one bogey. It would have been enough for him to play the final 36 holes to win the tournament by four strokes.

Premlall’s result sets a record for the largest margin of victory over the runner-up on the DP World Tour, surpassed only by the 15-stroke margin achieved by Tiger Woods at the 2000 US Open.

Behind Tiger, the most crushing victories to date were Ernie Els’s 13-stroke win at the 2005 BMW Asian Open, Retief Goosen’s victory at the 2002 Johnnie Walker Classic, also by 13 strokes, Tiger’s victory at the 1997 Masters by 12 strokes, and Charl Schwartzel’s victory at the 2013 Alfred Dunhill Championship (played in December 2012), also by 12 strokes.

The South African was unrivalled on the final day of the Estrella Damm Catalunya Championship, where he repeated the previous day’s 63 (-9), a course record. With this victory, he climbs to 26th place in the Race to Dubai and moves from 598th to 244th in the world rankings.

“No words. I’ve worked so hard to get into this position and it’s so rewarding to finally see the results of it,” said Premlall.

“The last eight, nine months have been such a struggle just to build myself onto a platform where I know I could give myself a chance to win and to end up obviously in this position. I’m just so grateful so it’s a dream come true.”

The Spanish players put in a standout performance with three players in the top 10: Alejandro del Rey, tied for third at 13 under par, Rafa Cabrera Bello, tied for sixth (-12), and Eugenio Chacarra, tied for tenth (-11).

Del Rey carded a final round of 68 (-4) to round off a remarkable tournament.

“It’s been one of the most complete weekends of the last few months. I’d been a bit off form for a while, but I played very solidly. I felt I had to stay very focused out there on every shot.”

“This course didn’t particularly appeal to me, nor did it suit my game entirely, but I’ve achieved a good result, which shows I’m playing well. It was a good time to make the most of it on a course where, perhaps, in another week of the year, I wouldn’t have felt I could do well.”

With a round of 66 (-6), Rafa Cabrera Bello rediscovered the best form of his career.

“I’ve played very well all week but today was a step up. From tee to green I played practically perfectly.”

“I think I hit all 14 fairways, spot on. And then on the greens, it was as if I’d hit all 18. A few putts went in, but I was constantly setting myself up for birdies.”

“It’s been one of my best rounds in a long time. In Ireland last year I probably putted better and was a bit sharper around the greens, but today from tee to green, I’ve never played better,” concluded the Gran Canaria native.

Eugenio Chacarra had another positive week and bid farewell to El Prat with a round of 70.

“I’m leaving happy. I’ve had five very good weeks, and my game is in great shape. Now it’s time to rest for a week and prepare for Belgium as best I can.”

“I still get a bit nervous when there’s pressure on the putt. You could see I’m still struggling with it, but the important thing is to admit it and keep working on it. Although today wasn’t a great day with the putter, it was better than three or four months ago.”

Among the other Spaniards who made the cut, Iván Cantero stood out in 17th place (-9), followed by Alfredo García Heredia, Jorge Campillo and Nacho Elvira tied for 25th, Rocco Repetto and Adri Arnaus (54th); and Quim Vidal and Ángel Hidalgo (59th).