biography

With back-to-back top five finishes in the final two events of European Ryder Cup qualification, Nicolai Højgaard showed Luke Donald that he could handle both pressure and expectation and was rewarded with a Captain’s pick to earn his debut appearance for Team Europe.

The 22 year old had a somewhat tumultuous 2022, but firmly put himself in the frame for selection after making a big statement when he replaced injured twin brother Rasmus in the Hero Cup in the second week of January. He finished the week as the joint top-point scorer, winning 3.5 points from four matches that included a singles victory over Séamus Power and 2.5 points alongside playing partner and Ryder Cup Vice Captain Francesco Molinari, who also Captained the winning Continental European side.

The former Junior Ryder Cup member posted a top ten in the first Rolex Series event of the year at the Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship and proved a consistent name featured on leaderboards that also saw him add a fifth place in Thailand, a runner-up finish on the PGA Tour in the Corales Puntacana Championship.

He continued to impress with a tie for fifth at Ryder Cup venue Marco Simone at the DS Automobiles Italian Open – the event and venue he won at in 2021- and once again among a strong field at the Genesis Scottish Open, where he finished tied sixth finish. Hitting form at the right time, Nicolai added a top 25 in his first Open Championship, and a tie for 14^th at the Wyndham Championship before his top three in the Czech Republic and his tied fifth finish in Switzerland last week.