DENMARK — Home favorite Rasmus Højgaard won Made in Himmerland 2023 in a six-hole play-off to become the tournament’s first Danish winner in its last ever staging at Himmerland.
Højgaard held off Nacho Elvira after coming from seven shots behind to finish level with the Spaniard on 13 under par.
“I’m speechless at the moment,” Højgaard said afterwards. “To be fair, I didn’t think I’d end up in a play-off — it’s quite amazing. To win a home event, it’s amazing.”
“It isn’t that long ago that I was one of those kids trying to get balls and signed gloves, so it’s cool to see them out here supporting us.”
“This is better than I could ever dream of. We’ve wanted a Danish winner for so long now, so to be the first one to do it is amazing.”
It was Højgaard’s fourth DP World Tour win and extended his perfect record in play-offs, having won the 2019 Afrasia Bank Mauritius Open and the following year’s ISPS Handa UK Championship in the same manner.
Elvira began the day one shot clear of Robert MacIntyre, with Richie Ramsay a further shot back, but started with a three-putt bogey.
Kalle Samooja and Højgaard had both moved within a shot of the lead alongside Ramsay, Højgaard with four birdies in six holes on the front nine while Samooja birdied three of the first five.
MacIntyre birdied the fourth to take the lead as Elvira’s birdie putt lipped out as he was already shaping for a celebratory fist-pump.
Both players birdied the par-five fifth but Højgaard and Ramsay came back at them.
Elvira saw another putt horseshoe out, a tremendous left-to-right effort from the fringe of the ninth green, where MacIntyre hit his approach to two feet to secure a birdie and a two-shot lead at the turn.
Elvira hit back at the tenth but when he bogeyed the 13th and MacIntyre ran up a triple after finding trouble down the right, Højgaard’s long birdie putt at the last saw him sharing the lead with Ramsay and Elvira.
Ramsay birdied the short 16th to go one shot ahead and MacIntyre and Elvira both bogeyed the 15th — though the Spaniard responded by birdieing the 16th and sneaking an 11-foot birdie putt at the next into the side of the hole.
