The style of challenge may have changed but Rasmus Højgaard is intent on mounting another title bid at the Danish Golf Championship in front of the home crowds.
Champion in 2023, the 25-year-old came close to winning the event for a second time last year as he lost out to England's Marco Penge by one shot despite a closing eagle in a dramatic finale at Furesø Golf Klub.
While the layout then was tree-lined, narrow and short by Tour-level standards, new host venue Great Northern, which becomes the 466th venue on the DP World Tour this week, is a complete contrast.
Opened for play in 2017, the modern Nicklaus Design course has hosted an event on the ECCO Tour for the past five years and is striking for its elevation changes and seven lakes that result in water being in play on as many as nine holes.
Unlike many others in the field, Højgaard has played it before and the five-time DP World Tour winner is excited to see it exposed to some of the world's best for what is the penultimate event of the Closing Swing on the Race to Dubai.
"I've been looking forward to this event," he said. "The course is great. I think everyone that's been out there has been very positive about it, so I think that's great for us.
"It's certainly very different from last year when it was more tree-lined and a bit more old school.
"Here we have a brand new course where there's some distance to it and you've got a few drivable holes and par fives that are gettable, but you certainly have to survive a good amount of holes out there to put a good score together."
As if the threat of water wasn't enough, the course is also exposed and strengthening winds were a factor for players during practice on Tuesday.
For this week, the two nines have been flipped at Great Northern which means the tournament will finish with a par three that has an island green, with those who work at the course predicting plenty of jeapardy down the stretch.
"They can put some very tricky pins out there," reflected Højgaard of the challenge posed by the course.
"I think one of the key things is obviously there's certain holes where driving is super important.
"You've got quite a bit of water in play out here, but then there's not much penalty in the rough as such.
"So, I think it's fairly forgiving of the tee, but certainly being able to hit a lot of greens out here would be a big thing because I think short game is going to be challenging."
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Højgaard comes into his home event this week on the back of two confidence-enhancing performances on the PGA TOUR, including a tie for fourth at the Rocket Classic earlier this month.
While he may have fallen short in his bid to join his twin brother Nicolai in making it to the FedExCup Playoffs, the 2025 Ryder Cup winner is encouraged by where his game is at he begins what he hopes is a productive remainder of the DP World Tour season.
"I feel like the game is good," he said. "I certainly had two decent weeks the last two weeks in America.
"It's always slightly difficult to say where the game is, but I've seen some really good stuff the last few weeks and hopefully I can carry some of that into this one."
While he is a household name in his homeland, and no stranger to competing in front of big crowds on the Major Championship stage, Højgaard is forever thankful for the support he receives in Denmark after good numbers turned out for Wednesday's pre-tournament Pro-Am.
"I didn't know what to expect to be honest [with it being a new venue], but there's a good showing out there today and the weather doesn't get any better as well, so I think we're in for a treat this week," he said.
