Thomas Bjørn on European team rookies, banter and expectations
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Thomas Bjørn is excited about the Ryder Cup, and he is especially interested in how the rookies will perform at this big competition. Nicolai Højgaard is a golfer whom he particularly highlighted. Bjorn has a great opinion of him and believes that Nicolai possesses enormous talent.
“He has a huge amount of talent. The way he hits the ball is special,” Bjørn told Golf Monthly! In addition to playing qualities, the mental component is also very important. Højgaard, despite his age, has already shown mental strength and willingness to become one of the best!
“He has the right attitude. He’s a winner. He wants to achieve things. He’s never a person to shy away from tough things. He doesn’t get scared. He actually elevates himself in tough situations”. The trip to Marco Simone proved to be a great thing for the European team.
“It was a really, really, really, really good experience to see these 12 together. They all had a good time”.
Atmosphere in the team
The most important thing is that there is a great atmosphere and laughter in the European team.
Rookies are the ‘target’ of banter, but of course in a positive way. “As any team in sport, they are hard on the rookies, they are giving them plenty of stick but in the right sort of manner. When you are a captain, if you have to get involved in trying to create a camaraderie then that becomes a very difficult thing.
This group certainly doesn’t need any help to like each other”. Ludvig Åberg is a name that is mentioned more and more often. The young Swede is probably the greatest talent in this sport. There are great expectations from him at the Ryder Cup.
The question is how he will handle the pressure. However, according to recent tournaments, Aberg is a golfer for whom pressure is not a problem. “You watch him hit the ball. You watch him approach the game. He’s just such an exciting player, and then he has a great head on him,” Bjørn said.
