BIRMINGHAM, England (AP) — Rasmus Hojgaard secured the remaining automatic qualification place in Europe’s Ryder Cup team by guaranteeing a high enough finish at the British Masters on Sunday.
The Danish player needed to finish in a two-way tie for 29th or better in the tournament being held at The Belfry to earn enough points to overtake Shane Lowry, who was clinging onto the sixth and final spot in the list of automatic qualifiers in Europe’s team.
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Hojgaard shot 1-under 71 in the final round and was assured of winning enough Ryder Cup points to jump past Lowry, even though the British Masters was yet to finish.
“I don’t know what to feel — I’ve been so stressed out on the course today. I was telling my caddie, I don’t know how I’m going to be able to do this,” said Hojgaard, who will make his Ryder Cup debut at Bethpage Black next month.
“I’m over the moon right now.”
Rory McIlroy, Justin Rose, Tommy Fleetwood, Robert MacIntyre and Tyrrell Hatton had already claimed the other five automatic spots in Luke Donald’s team, which will be defending the Ryder Cup.
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Lowry must now hope for one of the six captain’s picks to complete the 12-man team. They will be announced on Sept. 1.
Rasmus Hojgaard’s twin brother, Nicolai, competed for Europe in the 2023 Ryder Cup outside Rome.
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AP golf: https://apnews.com/hub/golf
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