Everything you need to know from last week's Betfred British Masters hosted by Sir Nick Faldo.
Noren makes long-awaited return to winner's circle
Alex Noren ended a seven-year wait for his 11th DP World Tour title as he fought off Nicolai Højgaard and a charging Kazuma Kobori to win the Betfred British Masters hosted by Sir Nick Faldo by one shot.
Noren, who also won this event in 2016, started the day one shot off the lead but took over at the top early in his final round before getting locked in a fierce battle with Dane Højgaard.
New Zealander Kobori stormed into contention late on with an eagle and four birdies in his final six holes to set the clubhouse target at 15 under par.
But Swede Noren produced a big finish of his own, picking up birdies at the 15th, 16th and 17th to take a two-shot lead to the 18th tee.
He suffered a late scare as an errant tee-shot at the last cost him a shot there but he finished the week on 16 under to return to the winner's circle for the first time since the 2018 Open de France.
"It means a lot. It was a great, great week," said Noren, who returned to action in May after seven months on the sidelines through injury.
"I don't think I've played like this for a very long time, and to get it done at the end, a little hiccup on the last, but extremely proud of myself.
"I told (caddie) Kyle (Morrison) earlier this year, 'We are going to get it. We are going to get into good golf again after kind of a bumpy year', and we did. The last three starts have been great."
Of his 11 DP World Tour titles, five have come in the UK.
Noren added: "Super happy and super happy to do it here in Britain. I seem to love British people and British courses. So it's wonderful here."
Rasmus Højgaard secures Team Europe spot at Ryder Cup
Rasmus Højgaard became the final player to qualify automatically for the European Ryder Cup Team after finishing in a tie for 13th at The Belfry Hotel & Resort.
Højgaard knew he needed to finish in a two-way tie for 29th or better to overtake Shane Lowry and earn his place in the biennial showpiece at Bethpage, New York.
He comfortably made the cut after posting rounds of 69 and 71 on Thursday and Friday respectively before producing another 69 on Moving Day to head into the final round in a strong position to achieve his goal.
And despite a wobble in the middle part of his fourth round, he finished the job on Sunday, signing for a closing 71 to finish on eight under par and ensure he will follow in the footsteps of his twin brother Nicolai, who was part of Luke Donald's victorious European Team at Marco Simone Golf and Country Club two years ago.
He joins Rory McIlroy, Robert MacIntyre, Tommy Fleetwood, Justin Rose and Tyrrell Hatton in the team. The rest of the side will be confirmed when Donald names his six Captain’s Picks on September 1.
Speaking after Sunday's final round, Højgaard said: "I don't know what to feel right now. I've been so stressed out on the course today.
"I was telling Tom, my caddie, out there 'I don't know how I'm going to be able to do this'. I managed to make a good four at the end there.
"So I'm over the moon right now."
The aces just keep on coming
For the second week running, we saw two holes-in-one at the opening event of the Back 9.
Firstly, Ben Schmidt produced a moment of perfection at the 182-yard 14th with an eight iron in the first round.
His tee shot never left the flagstick, landing 15 feet short before rolling out and trundling into the centre of the cup at dead weight.
With the ace, Schmidt helped raise £50,000 for Guide Dogs, Official Charity Partner, through a pledge by tournament Title Partner Betfred.
Spaniard Angel Hidalgo produced early fireworks on day three with a slam-dunk ace at the seventh hole.
There have now been 22 holes-in-one on the 2025 Race to Dubai.
There was more magic to come from Hidalgo at the 14th as he holed his bunker shot for an unlikely birdie on the par three.
Moscatel makes awesome albatross
Spaniard Joel Moscatel enjoyed a day to remember as he holed his second shot at the par-five 17th for an albatross. The rare bird helped him finish just above the cut line on level par, before rounds of 67-71 over the weekend saw him finish in a tie for 24th.
“I actually executed the shot perfectly,” he said of his moment of brilliance.
“I started the ball where I wanted. I didn’t see the ball go in, but I did see some crowds making some noise, so I thought it might be near, but never did I think it would be an albatross.
“Because we didn’t react the guys told us we holed it. I tried to stay calm because you have the 18th next which is a tough hole. I tried to stay focused.”
Penge ties course record
Last week's winner Marco Penge continued his fine form as he carded nine birdies and no bogeys in a flawless third-round 63 to equal the course record held by Martin Erlandsson.
The home hope made a huge leap up the leaderboard in the process, before a closing level-par 72 saw him finish the week in a tie for sixth.
Penge admitted trying to make the Ryder Cup team is on his mind, saying: "That has been my goal ever since I felt I had the chance to be in the mix to be even talked about. I sensed a couple of weeks ago that there was an opportunity."
Amateur Adam impresses
Making his first start in a regular DP World Tour event, Cameron Adam made a big impression at The Belfry.
The 22-year-old Scot was the sole amateur in the field after receiving a tournament invite from Sir Nick Faldo.
Leading the Global Amateur Pathway, an initiative created by the DP World Tour, The R&A and the PGA TOUR, he could earn himself a DP World Tour exemption for the 2026 season.
Needing to be inside the top 20 of the World Amateur Golf Rankings by mid-October to earn a card on Golf’s Global Tour, he boosted his chances by finishing in a tie for 19th.
Safe in the knowledge that a card on the HotelPlanner Tour awaits for next year, he will next tee it up at the Walker Cup next month.
