Ludvig Åberg played like a veteran at Augusta National despite being a first-time Masters participant. He finished the week solo second behind Scottie Scheffler, who won his second Green Jacket in three years.
The Swedish phenom posted a final round 3-under 69 to finish at 7-under for the tournament.
Now that his first major is under his belt, he cannot wait for the next one.
“This being my first major championship, you never really know what it’s going to be like until you’re there and experience it,” Åberg said. “I think this week has given me a lot of experiences and a lot of lessons learned in terms of those things. It makes me really hungry, and it makes me want to do it again and again.”
He admitted to shaking with nerves on the first tee, but once he settled in, the former Texas Tech Red Raider got to work.
Åberg looked polished and steady throughout the front nine, making three birdies to go out in 33 strokes.
His only hiccup came at the par-4 11th, where he made double-bogey.
“I’ve been playing that same shot all week where I aim just right of the right edge of the green and try to drive it — or draw it in there,” he explained. “I tried to do the same thing today, and it started a little bit too far left. The wind caught it and hit it in the water.”
The reigning RSM Classic champion knew to avoid that water but wanted to focus on the positive stuff that happened instead of that one error.
“It wasn’t ideal to hit it in the water on 11, I think we all know that,” Åberg said. “Me and my team, we’ve focused a lot on just keep playing no matter what happens. I think if you just keep playing, skills are going to show up.”
Many rookies would have let that double-bogey on 11 derail the rest of their round, but not Åberg. The 24-year-old kept plugging right along and would get both shots back on 13 and 14 with birdies.
“It was a good example of just keep playing, just to make sure to keep the ball in front of you, and there’s a lot of holes left to be played,” he explained. “I think me finishing well after those couple holes were pretty encouraging to see.”
Åberg has a month until his second major at the PGA Championship at Valhalla Golf Club, where he will look to continue his remarkable run.
Savannah Leigh Richardson is a golf staff writer for SB Nation’s Playing Through. For more golf coverage, be sure to follow us @_PlayingThrough on all major social platforms. You can also follow her on Twitter @SportsGirlSL and Instagram @savannah_leigh_sports.
