Ballesteros was diagnosed with a tumor on October 12 after suffering dizzy spells and was operated on two days later in the La Paz Hospital in Madrid.

Complications meant that he needed two further operations, with the final operation lasting for six and a half hours on Saturday.

He is currently being kept under sedation in La Paz's intensive care unit, but the latest communique released by the hospital on Wednesday had promising news.

"The patient Severiano Ballesteros has shown favorable progress in his neurological situation, although he still needs to remain under the control of the Intensive Care unit," said the statement.

Fifty-one-year-old Ballesteros retired from professional golf in 2007 after a career in which he won the British Open on three occasions and the US Masters twice. He is considered one of the most popular golfers of his generation.