How many golfers in the world today can say they beat Tiger Woods in one-on-one match play?
Some European Ryder Cup stars can do that, such as Jon Rahm. But so can Lucas Bjerregaard, the 33-year-old Dane currently ranked 378th in the Official World Golf Ranking (OWGR).
In 2019, just two weeks before Woods won at Augusta National, the 15-time major champion suffered a crushing defeat at the WGC-Dell Technologies Match Play in Austin, Texas.
Bierrego, who was ranked 52nd in the world GR at the time, defeated Woods 1-1 at Austin Country Club to advance to the semifinals. Woods defeated Rory McIlroy 2-1 in a star-studded showdown that morning, ahead of the afternoon's quarterfinals. Many doubted that the winner of the Woods-McIlroy match would advance to the final, as Bjellergau was unknown to most American golf fans.
The Danes had other ideas.
After defeating 2016 Open champion Henrik Stenson, Bjerregaard defeated Woods but lost to Matt Kuchar and Francesco Molinari the next day to finish fourth name. He then tied for 21st at the Masters, tied for 16th at the PGA Championship at Bethpage Black, missed the cut at the U.S. Open at Pebble Beach, and then again at Royal Portrush Finished tied for 16th place.
But Bjelregaard has not participated in a Grand Slam tournament since the 2019 British Open.
He had mixed results on the DP World Tour in the fall of 2019, but nothing spectacular. Then, as soon as the calendar turned to 2020, his game completely abandoned him. He started 2020 on the PGA Tour and made five straight cuts before the pandemic shut down everything. When golf returned, Bjelregaard remained in fear, missing three more cuts at the Travelers Championship, the Rocket Mortgage Classic and the Workday Charity Open. He returned to Europe in August because he had not received any invitations to the majors, which were postponed to that fall. In the 10 tournaments he played during this period, the Dane only made the cut in three, with his best result being a tie for 27th at the Portuguese Masters. That week he took home €8,487.00.
The struggles continued in 2021, with him making 14 cuts out of 26 events on the DP World Tour. But he played well enough to retain his DP World Tour card for the 2022 season. Regardless, 2022 turned out to be much worse than 2021, with Bjere missing 19 cuts and finishing 140th in the DP World Tour rankings. As a result, he loses eligibility for 2023 and is less than four years removed from being among the top 50 players in the Official World Golf Ranking.
After being relegated to the Challenge Tour (the DP World Tour's equivalent of the Korn Ferry Tour), Bjelregaard continued to underperform, making just 12 cuts out of 21 starts in 2023. He ended the season ranked 116th and didn't even have status on the Tour. Challenge Tour 2024.
“I actually started the year playing in some Nordic golf leagues,” Bjerregaard said Wednesday.
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“I was mainly invited to play at the beginning of the season.”
Somehow, these invitations helped. They gave him a breath of life and a glimmer of hope.
A strong summer followed, and Bjerregaard suddenly finished tied for second at the National Open (DP World Tour Denmark Golf Championship) in late August. The DP World Tour invited him to play in his home country and he jumped at the chance. Since then, he hasn't missed a promotion and ended the season ranked 20th in the Challenge Tour rankings.
Now he's competing in the Challenge Tour Finals in Mallorca, where 46 players will compete for 20 DP World Tour cards. He has a huge opportunity in front of him – the chance to return to the DP World Tour.
“I’m very happy to be here in the finals, this is my second time participating in this event,” said Bjerregaard.
“I'm trying to take it one day at a time. I look back at the year and a few months ago I didn't think I would be in this position. This week has been huge for all of us, for most of us It's going to be difficult, so if I can handle the pressure better than them, I think that's going to be key.”
Bjelgau last participated in the finals in 2013, when the event was held in Dubai. He finished 18th that year and narrowly qualified for the DP World Tour the following season. He dug himself a big hole through the first 36 holes that week, opening with a 1-over 71 and a 5-over 77. But he bounced back with a 5-under 67 and a 7-under 65 to secure his spot.
Eleven years later, he's hoping to bounce back again, although that will be an even greater achievement considering he's hit rock bottom in his game.
“I've probably been through more than most people in my career this week,” Bjerregaard added.
“There are a lot of up-and-coming players here who are fearless. They haven't been through the hard times and how difficult golf can be at times. Looking back at what I've had to go through over the past few years will help me put things into perspective this week ”
Bjerregaard has reached the pinnacle of the sport, defeated perhaps the best player of all time, and had the opportunity to play in all four majors and play well. But he also saw his game completely abandon him, which is something no one wants anyone to see. However, five years after the peak of his career, Bjelregaard has the opportunity to once again earn a spot on the DP World Tour. The entire golf world will be rooting for him, hoping that he will achieve the ultimate redemption story.
Jack Milko is the golf staff writer for SB Nation's Playing Through. Be sure to check it out @_PlayingThrough Get more golf coverage. You can follow him on Twitter @jackmilko as well as.
