Despite his twin brother Nicolai Højgaard claiming victory at the 2023 DP World Tour Championship, it was a painful day for Rasmus.
The Danish sensation appeared set to secure one of the ten PGA Tour cards available to the top ten players in the season-ending Race to Dubai Rankings who were not already exempt.
However, a crucial half-hour stretch on the 18th hole at the Earth course altered the course of his fortunes. Rasmus hit his second shot into the water guarding the green and could only manage par. Matthieu Pavon followed suit but hit a wedge within 2 feet for a birdie, which moved him ahead of Rasmus, who missed out on PGA Tour status by less than 27 points.
It was a bitter pill to swallow, especially after much of the round had suggested that both Højgaard brothers would secure PGA Tour cards, rather than just Nicolai.
Rasmus had to watch from a distance as his brother thrived across the pond, playing in both the Players Championship and the Masters Tournament, while he focused on grinding away on the DP World Tour, with his sights set on joining him in 2025.
Rasmus has now achieved that goal. His remarkable 2024 season featured some standout moments, including a victory over Rory McIlroy at the Irish Open in McIlroy’s backyard and a close second-place finish at the season-ending DP World Tour Championship a few months later.
Although he had to settle for runner-up in Dubai, it was enough for the 23-year-old to finish as the highest-ranked player not already exempt for the PGA Tour, earning starts in the 2025 Players Championship and two Signature Events: the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am and The Genesis Invitational.
His performance in Dubai also propelled him up the Official World Golf Ranking, rising from 58th to 45th, which secured him an invitation to the Masters Tournament. He and Nicolai will become the first twins to compete in the same edition.
We had the chance to speak exclusively with Rasmus at the Team Cup in Abu Dhabi last month to hear his thoughts on his 2024 season, joining Nicolai in America, and his “ultimate goal” of playing in the Ryder Cup.
It was a great year. Obviously, coming off ‘23 was a bit of a disappointment, but it gave me a lot of motivation to come out for the ‘24 season and try and get that PGA Tour card. I obviously got off to a good start, and after The Open, from around September, the last event, I played really, really good golf. It’s been great. My goal was to crack the top 50 in the world by the end of the year, and I managed to do that. I’m looking forward to playing all four Majors this year.
Growing up, Rory has always been my favourite golfer. So, to be able to battle with him down the stretch at a couple of events last year was awesome. The Irish Open was fantastic because it kind of confirmed that I was going to get a card in America, and it took that little bit of pressure off for the last bit of the season. Obviously, it was against Rory in Northern Ireland, so I was probably not the most popular guy in the country on that Sunday! But he came up to me and congratulated me; that was pretty cool.
I’m going to focus on America. When that season is done in the States, I’m going to come back to Europe and play a lot of great events, including the Irish Open and Wentworth. I think that’s just how it is when you get one of those ten cards—you’ve got to play your chances in America. But it’s not like we’re forgetting about the DP World Tour because I love this Tour, and I will always play here. I’m still looking forward to playing a lot of events in Europe.
It’s going to make travel a lot easier! We can travel around, play together, and make life outside the golf course a bit more fun as well. Hopefully, we can push each other to do well.
100%. I think what Nicolai did at the 2023 Team Cup played a big part in him getting into that team in Rome, so I’m going to try my best throughout the year. But the Ryder Cup will not be on my mind every week as we’ll be playing different tournaments. The ultimate goal is obviously the Ryder Cup, but I think if I keep having the right mindset and trying to improve my game all the time, there’s a good chance that I could be there in New York. But I try not to get too ahead of myself.
It’s not like you just forget about it; it’s always there in the back of your mind, but it doesn’t really take control of anything. There’s a long way to go—seven and a half months—so it would be great if we get to August and I’m in with a shot. But again, I have to play good golf from now on to have a chance. That’s where my focus is.
It’s going to be cool. It makes the week up until The Masters a lot easier for us because we share the same coach and physio, so now we can do everything together. I’m very happy for him to receive an invitation. I’ve obviously heard a lot of stories about the place as he played last time, so I’m looking forward to sharing the experience with him.
There will probably be a few other players I’ll go to, to start with! But I’m sure he has some good points from what he experienced. I think Nicolai played a practice round with Jon (Rahm) and a couple of other guys who have done well and won there. I think we’ll both want to play practice rounds with guys that have had success at the tournament over the years. Yeah, I’ll probably start with a couple of other legends for advice before asking Nicolai!
