Clarke aiming high

To try to find consistency the 38-year-old from Northern Ireland is starting a run of five consecutive tournaments, finishing with the PGA Championship at Wentworth.

"I've not done five in a row for a very long time," Clarke said at the Centro Nacional course. "I've been working with [coach David] Leadbetter a little bit and I got a tip from Pete on the range so I'm very hopeful about this week."

Clarke, who lost his wife Heather last year after a long battle with cancer, has dropped to 69th in the rankings having once been as high as ninth.

His record includes ten European Tour titles and a 2000 WGC-Accenture Match Play final victory over world number one Tiger Woods.

Clarke's best finish this season was a tie for 20th at the Dubai Desert Classic.

He missed the cut at the US Masters earlier this month before taking a break in the Bahamas with his young sons Tyrone and Conor.

"The reasons are obvious why it takes a little bit longer to get back to a normal life but I didn't think it would take as long as this," he said.

"I just have to be patient though and I'm sure my game will turn around."

Clarke's previous trip to Madrid came last September when he played for the first time since his wife's death, the week before helping Europe to victory at the Ryder Cup in Ireland.