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Before Rasmus Neergaard-Petersen ever played golf with a real club, his parents gave him a plastic one. He couldn’t even walk yet. He was simply a child crawling over the floor and “smacking the ball!”

Helle and Jens Neergaard-Petersen both of their parents played golf, and they didn’t simply play on the weekends. They enjoyed the game so much that it affected their lives at home in the north of Copenhagen. They didn’t make their son play golf. It was just there, part of everyday life like meals and bedtime stories.

Rasmus tried different activities as he grew up, such as badminton, football, and golf. His parents wanted him to explore various sports instead of focusing on just one too soon. When he was 13 and joined Denmark’s national development squad, the family had to make a decision. They could have made him focus on golf right away, but they believed it was better to let his skills develop on their own.

Rasmus’s parents supported his choice to go to Oklahoma State University, even though it was far away. They gave him the confidence to succeed at home and the courage to excel abroad. Their approach worked well.

In 2017, when he was a junior, he won the Danish Junior Championship. Then, in 2018 and 2019, he won the German International Amateur Championship two years in a row.

Rasmus Neergaard-Petersen also helped Denmark win the 2017 European Boys’ Team Championship, which was an early hint that he could do well on his own and with a group.

But that wasn’t the end of his journey. He crossed the Atlantic in 2018 to go to Oklahoma State University, where he played college golf until 2023. There, he improved his talents and discipline, garnering All-American awards and becoming more like a professional athlete.

Rasmus Neergaard-Petersen became a pro in 2023, after graduation, and his career took off. In 2024, he won three Challenge Tour events, which earned him a DP World Tour card. He then finished 15th in the 2025 Race to Dubai, which qualified him for membership in both the PGA Tour and the DP World Tour for 2026.

Reflecting on his ambitions for the season, Rasmus said, “The main goal for this year is to see if I can win a tournament on the DP World Tour. Then, also, I’d love to see if I can grab one of those PGA Tour cards. There is obviously a lot of golf to be played this year, so hopefully, I can get off to a hot start early on.” And he delivered that!

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Rasmus Neergaard-Petersen stuns Smith on final hole

The last day at Royal Melbourne was a lesson in how to stay calm under pressure. Neergaard-Petersen and Cameron Smith were tied going into the 72nd hole. After hitting a good chip from the rough, he made a calm putt to save par. Smith, on the other hand, missed his own five-foot par putt, giving the Dane a stunning one-stroke win at 15-under par.

He started to pull away late on Saturday when he shot a 5-under 66, with three birdies at the end, to take the lead at 14-under. His momentum continued into Sunday, and his steady, smart play, which included clutch putting and brilliant recovery shots, made the difference in a field full of strong competitors.

Rasmus Neergaard-Petersen won the Australian Open and got a check for AUD 340,000, which is roughly US $225,000. After the win, he said, “This means the world.”

That feeling makes sense: for a young golfer whose path began with a plastic club at home, this achievement is more than just a win; it’s the culmination of talent that has been fostered from childhood.