More Weekly Read: The Two Youngest European Ryder Cuppers Erase All Doubts
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It was quite the day for the two youngest members of the European Ryder Cup team. And to think that Nicolai Hojgaard and Ludvig Aberg were considered controversial picks at the time by captain Luke Donald. If there were still any lingering doubts, Sunday should have ended them.
Hojgaard, 22, of Denmark, and Aberg, 24, of Sweden, won several hours apart on what was the last big day of the 2023 golf calendar.
In Dubai, Hojgaard came from behind with a final-round 64 to overtake Viktor Hovland and Tommy Fleetwood in the season-ending DP World Tour Championship. In Sea Island, Ga., Aberg shot a final-round 61 to capture the RSM Classic.
For Hojgaard, it was his third DP World Tour title and came after a second-place finish at the Nedbank Challenge. The victory helps him get inside the Official World Golf Ranking top 50 for the first time.
Ludvig Aberg (left) and Nicolai Hojgaard, pictured before the 2023 Ryder Cup opening ceremony, both had impressive wins Sunday.
Luke Walker/Getty Images
"It means a lot, it’s the sweetest one," he said. "So much hard work has been put in over the past couple of years—it feels amazing, this is for family and everything they put in over the years. So much hard work going into this, for it to happen like this is unbelievable.
"We know there are a lot of birdies but we have to hit the shots and hole the putts, anything can happen we were just focused on the job today, to walk up 18 knowing there’s a good chance feels good."
Hojgaard finished second on the DP World Tour’s Race to Dubai behind Rory McIlroy but had already locked up a spot on the PGA Tour for 2024 via finishing among the top 125 via the non-member PGA Tour list.
Aberg has been even more impressive. Since getting on the PGA Tour in the spring via the PGA Tour University list, he’s done nothing but shine. He won on the DP World Tour in Switzerland prior to the Ryder Cup, got a pick from Donald, played on the winning European team, lost in a playoff then won on Sunday, matching the PGA Tour scoring record in the process.
"It’s been so much fun," said Aberg, who starred at Texas Tech before turning pro this spring. "I still pinch myself in the morning when I wake up and realize this is what I do for a job."
He will realize some big perks now. A spot at The Sentry to start the year. An invitation to the Masters, where amazingly he will play in in a major championship for the first time. An exemption into the first two signature events next year on the PGA Tour.
A Few More Things ...
> Aberg has played just 14 events as a pro but has won two of them and been outside of the top 25 just three times. He’s 33rd in the Official World Golf Ranking and in excellent shape to earn his way into the other majors in addition to the Masters next year via the rankings. ... By moving to 53rd in the FedEx Cup standings, Aberg became eligible for the first two signature events following the Sentry, Pebble Beach and the Genesis. ... Nos. 51-60 in the final FedEx standings, called the "Next 10" earn spots in those signature events. In addition to Aberg, the others to earn spots were Mackenzie Hughes, Beau Hossler, Ben Griffin, Taylor Montgomery, Matt Kuchar, Nick Hardy, Sam Ryder and Luke List.
> The RSM Classic was also the final opportunity to earn fully exempt status for 2024 by finishing among the top 125. Doug Ghim missed the cut but still finished 124th, while Andrew Novak moved up a spot to 123. Troy Merritt, who started 123rd, hung onto the final spot at 125. Carl Yuan, who began the week at No. 125, dropped a spot to 126th and will have conditional status on the PGA Tour. Ryan Moore made the biggest move, from 128th to 118th.
> For the first time, the top finishers on the DP World Tour’s Race to Dubai earn PGA Tour cards for 2024. The qualifiers are those who were not otherwise exempt on the PGA Tour, such as Rory McIlroy, who won the Race to Dubai. Those who qualified are Adrian Meronk, Ryan Fox, Victor Perez, Thorbjorn Olesen, Alexander Bjork, Sami Valimaki, Robert MacIntyre, Matthieu Pavon, Jorge Campillo and Ryo Hisatsune. ... Nicolai Hojgaard’s twin brother, Rasmus, just missed out on earning his PGA Tour card, finishing 11th.
> The International Series wrapped up its part of the Asian Tour schedule with Indian golfer Gaanjeet Bhullar winning the Indonesian Masters and a $270,000 first-place check. In addition to the nice payday, it meant vaulting to eighth position on the season-ending Order of Merit and a bye into the second day of the LIV Golf Promotions event next month in Abu Dhabi.
> Former U.S. Amateur champion Andy Ogletree clinched the No. 1 spot a year ago, meaning a direct place in the LIV Golf League next year. Places two through eight earn a second-day spot and avoid a first-round of qualifying at the Promotions event, which will see three more players join LIV Golf next year.
> David Puig finished second on the Order of Merit but is already assured a spot in the LIV Golf League. The others to earn a bye are Ben Campbell (New Zealand), Kieran Vincent (Zimbabwe), Takumi Kanaya (Japan), Wade Ormsby (Australia) and Gunn Charoenkul (Thailand).
> The 2024 PGA Tour season begins at the Sentry in 73 days. And the first round of the Masters is 165 days away.