Thorbjorn Olesen

Olesen was born in Fureso, Denmark, and turned professional in 2008. After winning three tournaments, he finished 4th on the third-tier Nordic League rankings in 2009. He graduated to Europe's second-tier Challenge Tour in 2010. During his debut season, he claimed his first title on that tour at The Princess, held in Sweden at the beginning of July. He finished 3rd on the 2010 Challenge Tour ranking to secure a full exemption for the 2011 European Tour. A football fanatic who divides his loyalties between FC Copenhagen and Manchester United, Olesen lived up to his star billing by winning the 2012 Sicilian Open in his second season on the European Tour at age 22. He produced four rounds in the 60s to win by one shot at Verdura Golf and Spa Resort, fulfilling the potential he showed on the 2010 Challenge Tour. They also finished runner-up at the Alfred Dunhill Links Championship in October 2012, pushing friend Branden Grace to the end. They missed just five cuts all season en route to taking the 15th spot in the Race to Dubai. He improved on his hugely successful rookie season in 2011, when he was 48th, courtesy of runner-up finishes at the South African Open Championship (December 2010), the BMW Italian Open, and the Alstom Open de France. He made his World Cup debut the same year, partnering with Anders Hansen from Denmark in China after Thomas Bjorn withdrew due to injury. He often practices with his compatriot and golf idol, Soren Hansen, in Dubai. He was formerly known as Jacob, but he decided to use his middle name, Thorbjorn, as it is far less common.
2013 Notes: Was runner-up at Abu Dhabi HSBC Golf Championship by one shot, and two weeks later finished T-3rd at Omega Dubai Desert Classic. On the day before the start of the Shell Houston Open, he was in a four-car crash on the freeway and suffered whiplash. They played in the first round, shot an 82, and withdrew due to back pain and headaches. Two weeks later, he finished T-6th at the Masters in his first career start at Augusta National. It was his second top-10 in a major in four career starts (also T-9th at the 2012 British Open). Finished T-17th at the Volvo World Match Play Championship and 67th at the Scottish Open but missed the cut in the other seven starts. He finished 32nd in the Race to Dubai.
2014 Notes: Again got off to a great start, finishing T-3rd at the Qatar Masters, followed by a T-5th at the Dubai Desert Classic. After finishing T-8th at The Memorial, he missed the cut in his next four starts before breaking that streak with a T-64th at the British Open. They had a solid spring, finishing T-7th at the Made in Denmark before winning the Handa Perth International. He recorded one more top-10, T-6th at the WGC-HSBC Champions. They had 22 starts on the European Tour, making 20 cuts and finishing in the top 10 five times. He finished 32nd in the Race to Dubai.
2015 Notes: Played 26 European Tour events, making 11 cuts and recording three top-10s, including a victory at the Alfred Dunhill Links. Was runner-up at the AfrAsia Bank Mauritius Open. He finished 28th in the Race to Dubai.
2016 Notes: Played 26 European Tour events and made 16 cuts with six top-10s. He was T-2nd at the Qatar Masters and T-8th the following week at the Dubai Desert Classic. He finished T-8th at Shenzhen International and T-2nd at BMW International, three shots behind winner Henrik Stenson. He won his fourth European Tour title at the Turkish Airlines Open by three shots over David Horsey and Li Haotong. With the victory, he climbed up the Race to Dubai ranking, finishing the season 12th with 1,857,252 euros.
2017 Notes: Played 24 European Tour events, making 22 cuts. Finished in the top 10 five times, including T-3rd at the French Open, T-4th at the Nordea Masters, and 5th at the Turkish Airlines Open. He finished 23rd in the Race to Dubai.
2018 Notes: Played 24 European Tour events and made 21 cuts with eight top-10 finishes. He ranked 8th in the Race to Dubai. He won for the first time since 2016 at the Italian Open, where he carded a final-round 64 to defeat Francesco Molinari by a shot. Finished T-2nd, one shot behind Matt Wallace at the BMW International Open. He was five shots out of the playoff at the Dubai Duty-Free Irish Open and finished T-6th. He had his best result on American soil with a T-3rd at the WGC-Bridgestone Invitational, five shots behind winner Justin Thomas. He was 4th at the Nordea Masters. He claimed the final automatic qualification spot for the European Team and made his Ryder Cup debut in France. They went 1-1-0, capping the week with a 5 & 4 victory over Jordan Spieth in Sunday singles. Played in the fall events on the European Tour and finished T-7th at the WGC-HSBC Champions and Turkish Airlines Open.
2019 Notes: He played in 13 European Tour events, making nine cuts and two top-ten finishes. I was T-7th at the Omega Dubai Desert Classic and T-10th at the BMW International Open.
2020 Notes: He played in 12 European Tour events, making eight cuts. His best finish was T-13th at the Golf In Dubai Championship.
2021 Notes: He played in 17 DP World Tour events, making ten cuts and two top-ten finishes. He was 129th in the Race to Dubai. He was T-5th at the Gran Canaria Lopesan Open and T-8th at the AVIV Dubia Championship.
2022 Notes: He played in 25 DP World Tour events, making 18 cuts and two top-ten finishes. He was 26th in the Race to Dubai. He won the Betfred British Masters by a shot over Sebastian Soderberg. He was 8th at the Horizon Irish Open. He ended his year with a T-30th finish at the DP World Tour Championship.
2023 Notes: Played in 24 DP World Tour events, making 20 cuts with eight top-ten finishes. Was 9th in the Race to Dubai. Was T-4th at the Ras Al Khaimah Championship, two shots back of winner Daniel Gavins. Shot 64-66 over the weekend to win the Thailand Classic by four shots over Yannik Paul. The following week was T-6th at the Hero Indian Open, seven shots back of winner Marcel Siem. Shot a final round 66 to finish 3rd, three shots back of the winner Simon Forsstrom at the Soudal Open. Finished his season with a 3rd place finish at the Nedbank Golf Challenge and 26th at the DP World Tour Championship. Since he was in the top 10 on the 2023 DP World Tour Eligibility Ranking, he earned an exemption for 2024 on the PGA Tour.
2024 Notes: Was T-8th at the Dubai Invitational. Won the Ras Al Khaimah Championship by six shots over Rasmus Hojgaard. Best finish on the PGA Tour, T-14th at the Valero Texas Open.