Jacob Skov Olesen may be the least stressed man at the DP World Tour Qualifying School Final Stage this week - safe in the knowledge that he will be getting a card of one sort or another regardless of his result.
If he finishes in the top 20 and ties after the six rounds at INFINITUM, he will relinquish his amateur status and take up his DP World Tour card for next season.
If he does not, then a card from the Board of Governors of the Augusta National Golf Club will be hitting his doormat, handing him a place at next year's Masters Tournament.
As the first Danish winner of The Amateur Championship, Olesen will get to play the hallowed fairways in Georgia but only if he does not join the paid ranks between now and the first Major of 2025.
An opening 65 over the Lakes Course was the sort of start that could rob him of that opportunity but the 25-year-old was relaxed about his prospects for the next five days - and five months.
"I think I might be the one that's the least stressed this week because if I don't get through, I get to play the Masters next year," he said.
"My plan B is pretty damn good so I might be the one who has the least amount of stress, at least right now.
"Later on that will probably change but I like that, I like playing under pressure.
"It's not do or die, it's a win-win in a way. I like it, it's good to have a feeling like that. I'm playing more free even though I want to get through, I really want to get through but I do have a good back-up."
Olesen's impressive play in his few DP World Tour events so far suggests he will probably make his way down Magnolia Lane at some point, even if it is not in 2025.
While racking up enough points on the Global Amateur Pathway Rankings to earn himself a Challenge Tour card for next season, he also made the cut at The Open and Omega European Masters and finished fifth at the Danish Championship.
"It's been a good year, even since last summer it's been really good," he said.
Impressive start to the week for amateur Jacob Skov Olesen 🤝
— DP World Tour Q-School (@DPWTQSchool) November 8, 2024
Follow the leaderboard from round one 👇#DPWTQSchool
"I'm just doing my thing in practice and doing my thing on the course, playing the kind of golf that I play and the style of golf that I play and I think I did a really good job of that today. I'm playing great.
"Me and my coach and my team are on the right path and we're doing the right things. This year has told me that I'm ready to take the next step.
"I felt that way this spring season in college and then making the cut at The Open and top five at the Danish Championship, it kind of just helps you confirm your suspicions.
"It's a different stage and a a different setting to what you're used to at the amateur events so it's been good to see.
"I got to play in Switzerland as well, that was cool. Denmark was at home with a lot of people you know but Switzerland was more like how it is for a week on the road.
"It's good to see that, it's good experiences for next year and I can lean back on what I Iearned those weeks about how to prepare the best way and how the courses play on the DP World Tour."
