In a scene that could have come straight out of Twister, the Danish Golf Championship was more about surviving Mother Nature than finessing fairways on Friday.
Defending champion and local hero, Rasmus Højgaard, managed to cling onto a share of the lead by his fingernails as Lübker Golf Resort was battered by winds that would make a kite surfer blush.
Højgaard, just 23 and already carrying the weight of Danish golf on his broad shoulders, came into the day with a comfortable two-stroke lead after a sizzling 65 in the first round.
But comfort is a relative term when the wind starts howling at 46 miles per hour. By the time he stepped onto the course for his second round, that cushion had shrunk to a single stroke, and things didn’t exactly go according to plan.
After a promising start with birdies on the fourth and fifth holes, it seemed like Højgaard might just blow away the competition.
Instead, it was the competition that almost blew him away. A few unkind gusts and some wayward shots later, Højgaard dropped shots on the eighth, tenth, and 11th holes, pulling him back to five under par with seven holes still looming when the horn blasted to suspend play. It was like a cruel prank—here’s the lead, now watch it tumble in the wind.
But Højgaard wasn’t the only one caught in this meteorological maelstrom. Rasmus Neergaard-Petersen, another Dane who’s been tearing up the European Challenge Tour, posted a stellar 66 in his second round, climbing up to join Højgaard at five under par.
The Norse gods must have been in a better mood for Norway’s Kristoffer Reitan, who matched that 66 after an opening 71 to also tie the lead.
Rasmus Neergaard-Petersen: “It’s been fun. Great crowds, even when the weather hasn’t been that good – typical Danish summer.
But it’s been awesome. Playing some solid golf. Thought today I started making some putts and I was able to make a lot more birdies and put together a good round.
“It’s such a test mentally. You’ve got to stay locked in pretty much for the whole round.
There’s not really any holes where you can breathe and relax a bit. On pretty much any hole out here with these conditions, there’s a big number out there.
You’ve got to stay locked in and stay true to the game plan and accept there will be some shots that may catch a gust and end up in a spot where you don’t want to be, you’ve just got to deal with it.”
Meanwhile, Frenchman Adrian Saddier, known for his cool demeanour, calmly followed his 68 with a 69, keeping himself in the mix.
And just before the winds became completely unbearable, Frederic Lacroix squeezed in a birdie on his tenth hole to sneak into the five-under group.
With the winds set to continue howling through the night, officials called it a day with plans to pick up where they left off at 8 a.m. on Saturday.
The third round will be a two-tee, U-draw affair, starting no earlier than 11:30 a.m., assuming the course isn’t blown into the North Sea by then.
As the Danish Golf Championship heads into the weekend, it’s anyone’s guess who will emerge victorious, but one thing’s for sure—it’s going to take more than just a good golf game to win this one. Buckle up, folks, it’s going to be a wild ride.
