San Diego (AP) – Jon Rahm saw this happening, even if he did not know the player – Ludvig Aberg – or how much college would make his mark.
Towards the end of the inaugural season of Liv Golf in October 2022, Rahm was still optimistic about the PGA Tour and was worried about missing a great opportunity. A Spanish colleague, Eugenio Chacarra, had gone from Oklahoma State to take the guaranteed Saudi wealth.
Rahm wondered who was the next one.
“My advice at the PGA Tour?” Start watching university players and offer them more than you do now, ”said Rahm. “All the other major sports have a direct path to the major leagues of the college except golf.”
The changes to the PGA Tour University were already in preparation, and a month later, the senior n ° 1 went from access to minor leagues (Korn Ferry Tour) to a complete PGA Tour card. Aberg, a senior from Texas Tech, became the first player to take this direct path.
Four months later, he went 2-2 in the Ryder Cup and celebrated a European victory. In the six months, his name was in the record book of the PGA Tour by matching the lowest score of 72 holes.
Has that prevented Aberg from joining Liv? No.
It turns out that a LIV representative had already tried to attract him in the spring of 2022. Aberg described it to the STV Sport in Sweden as money that changes life. He also saw red flags. Aberg prefers to keep life simple. His goal was the PGA Tour and the European tour.
And it is doing well enough for the moment. He has already won just under $ 18.5 million in 38 tournaments since he left Texas Tech.
The latest example was his victory on Sunday in the Genesis Invitational at Tough Torrey Pines when he joined a three -stroke deficit on the nine back with a range of great moments with his driver, two fairway metals, His putter and an iron at 9, probably the best blow of the group.
The 14th hole was the second of the three consecutive Birdies which allowed him to catch Maverick McNealy. The pin was back to the right, trying to attack with a hole corner, trouble for a long time. Aberg had worked on the theft of his shots, and that was one of those moments “show me what you have”.
“I had a nuning corner number, but I hit an iron at 9 to have the rotation,” he said. “But it is also a dangerous blow because if you pull it a little, it will still and go into danger. It was one of them in which I improved, this iron shot in flight .
“It was cool to succeed when I needed to do it and give myself a chance to do a birdie.”
The simplicity with which the 25 -year -old plays is illustrated by his goal along the nine rear after McNealy has finished. “Everything I tried to do once I saw that he had displayed 11 (Sous) was just to reach 12, really,” he said.
And he did it with a large journey in the middle, a 7 wood which would safely erase water and two putts, the last from 7 feet on the same line – certainly not the same conditions or circumstances – as the 12 feet Tiger Woods made to force a playoff series in the United States.
It was his greatest victory, yes, but mainly because there are only two others. His first was the European Masters in Switzerland in 2023, the other at Sea Island at the end of this year when he fired 61-61 on weekends to win the RSM Classic.
It would be certain to follow, and others are necessary before it can be considered a serious threat to Scottie Scheffler, who did not win before his third full season on the PGA Tour and now that’s all that ‘He seems to be doing.
Aberg was disappointed not to win last year – he had three finalists, including the Masters, his debut in the major championship – and 14 months between the victories, it was like a life. Jordan Spieth had a lightning start for his career in 2013 when he went from any status to a place in the presidents’ team. He failed to win the tour the following year, then 2015 worked well enough for him.
There is much to love about Aberg, the power and the efficiency of his swing to the speed with which he plays respect and the politeness with which he crosses life.
“I was impressed because I never looked at someone … More for his behavior and his composure than his game,” said Lucas Glover, remembering the first time he played with Aberg . “For me, it is the most impressive in him is the way he does it in the right direction, humbly and a bit like Scottie. It is impressive to look at someone so young with so much game and as much success and always do it with their humility and grace. »»
If anything, Aberg has set a high bar for the middle school students who come behind him.
Michael Thorbjornsen of Stanford was the next player to be n ° 1 at PGA Tour University and begins his first full year. Gordon Sargent de Vanderbilt is still at school but already has a card locked in the “accelerated” program for the subclasses. The Junior of Florida State, Luke Clanton, already has two finalists and is on the verge of a card.
As anyone, the success of the college does not guarantee anything in golf. The PGA Tour university simply gives the best players ahead. Aberg ran with it. He seems to do everything quickly.
___
On the fringe analyzes the greatest subjects of golf during the season. Plus ap golf: https://apnews.com/hub/golf
Leave a Reply