New talent takes the spotlight on the 2024 DP World Tour.
In a year filled with countless storylines, some players have risen to prominence on the global stage and become more visible than most.
A Swede celebrates being recognized as an award-winning rookie. A fellow Scandinavian joins him on the PGA Tour. A little-known British man went from delivering groceries to returning to the Major stage.
Here, we take a look at three players with impressive performances in the 2024 Race to Dubai who have reason to be optimistic as the new year begins…
Jesper Swenson
age: 28 | Dubai trip rankings in 2024: 10 |Official World Golf Ranking: 106
The latest up-and-coming Swedish talent and the latest winner of the Sir Henry Cotton Young Talent of the Year Award.
A former international amateur teammate of Ludvig Åberg, he turned professional in 2019 and won his first in the Nordic Golf League a year later Paid Championship.
In his third season on the Challenge Tour, he won his first title at the B-NL Challenge Cup in the Netherlands, before moving onto the DP World Tour.
Since then, he has reached new heights. The 28-year-old finished second twice in his first six starts at Dubai 2024 before recording a play-off victory over Kiradech Aphibarnrat at the Porsche Singapore Classic in March. Achieved his breakthrough on the DP World Tour.
His performance early in the season earned him an invitation to the PGA of America, where he made his major debut at the PGA Championship before making the cut at Valhalla Golf Club.
After starting the race in the back nine, he went on to solidify his status as one of the top performers at the Race to Dubai with back-to-back top-five finishes, finishing in the top 10 on his DP World Tour Championship debut. campaign.
Now, he can continue his career development by competing on this year's DP World Tour and PGA Tour.
Niklas Norgaard
age: 30 | Dubai trip rankings in 2024: 11 |Official World Golf Ranking: 93
Another Scandinavian country that has produced many great golfers is Denmark, and Norgaard will take his career to new heights in 2024.
He has been steadily rising in the professional rankings since turning pro in 2015, but his profile has skyrocketed since winning his first DP World Tour title at the Betfred British Masters presented by Sir Nick Faldo in September It's getting higher and higher.
Wins at the start of the final nine events boosted the 30-year-old's confidence, and he followed that up with top-10 finishes in the Rolex Series – at the BMW PGA Championship and the Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship. PGA Tour eligibility 2025.
Known as one of the best hitters on the DP World Tour, he ranked third in driving distance at Dubai 2024, moving from outside the top 300 to inside the top 100 in the world.
With that comes more opportunities to compete on the Grand Slam's biggest stage, and his performances in recent months mean he will be part of the continent's squad for the group's tourney in Abu Dhabi in early 2025. cup.
As we enter the Ryder Cup year, can Norgaard continue to catch the eye of captain Luke Donald and break into the European team at Bethpage?
Joe Dean
age: 30 | Dubai trip rankings in 2024: 37 |Official World Golf Ranking: 159
It's not just winning the trophy that determines how the game goes.
Unknown to all but the most ardent race observers this time last year, Dean went from competing in one-day events to claiming the lucrative DP World Tour title in just over 12 months.
Between earning his card through Q-school and making his debut at the 2024 DP World Tour season in Qatar, he worked as a delivery driver for Morrisons supermarket in the UK.
After worrying about travel and lack of funds to support the costs of tournaments around the world, the Briton changed his tune and finished tied for second at the magical Kenya Open.
Since then, he nearly won the KLM Open in his rookie season, but lost to Guido Migliozzi in a play-off with Marcus Kinhult ).
But his results were enough to secure his return to the British Open seven years after leaving Royal Troon, where he finished tied for 25th before three top-20 finishes in the back nine secured him a place in the Arabian League at the end of the season. Position Emirates in the Double Header.
Writing on his player blog ahead of the HSBC Championship in Abu Dhabi, Dean insisted he would take nothing for granted as he looks ahead to the challenge of continuing his success in 2024.