Masters champion McIlroy was left to rue a slow start but soon put himself in contention with five birdies in a row.

That left him with a chance of victory, but a wayward tee shot on the 18th left him in deep rough and he could only find the bunker with his recovery, and that ended his hopes.

“I was just trying to get the most out of what I had. I didn’t have the greatest of starts and I wasn’t really focused on winning, I was just trying to piece it together with good swings,” McIlroy told Sky Sports.

“It was still a good first week back and I learned a lot about my game. I wasn’t very sharp, but hopefully I’m a bit sharper now going into next week.”

The demise of McIlroy left a shootout between Lowry, who had moved into the solo lead on 10 under with a birdie on the 13th, and Elvira, who had led but fell back into the pack after back-to-back bogeys on the eighth and ninth.

However, a superb recovery from Elvira on the 10th, when he made par despite taking a drop for finding water, sparked his comeback and he held his nerve to win.

“It means the world. If you had told me on Tuesday that I was going to be winning this I would never have believed you,” the 38-year-old told Sky Sports.

“It’s a dream come true, especially having my family here. Whatever happens now will not come close to this.”