PONTE VEDRA BEACH, Fla. — Not nearly as flashy, Ludvig Åberg was nonetheless effective, putting himself in position for his biggest win to date as a professional with a solid third round on Saturday at the Players Championship.
A day after going 5 under par in his first four holes on his way to a 63, Åberg was far more steady while extending his lead in the process, outplaying two-time major winner Xander Schauffele in the final group at TPC Sawgrass to take a three-shot advantage into the final round Sunday.
Åberg, 26, followed his second-round 63 with a 1-under par-71 and is looking to continue his steady run toward the Masters next month.
He is at 203, 13 under par, and leads Michael Thorbjornsen, who shot 65, by three, and Cam Young, who had 67, by four. Åberg is five ahead of Schauffele, who made just one birdie during a 73, and is tied for fourth.
After withdrawing from his first tournament of the year at the American Express and then missing the cut at the Farmers Insurance Open, the Swedish golfer has gradually improved each event and is coming off a tie for third last week at the Arnold Palmer Invitational. He is ranked 21st in the Official World Golf Ranking.
“Just kind of progressively getting better,” said Åberg, who has just three bogeys through 54 holes. “I feel like I've understood a little bit more what's important for me in my golf swing and kind of sticking to that, not necessarily trying to look away other ways around it, and keeping it very simple.
“I think my mind is very good when it's simple, and when things are very easy, and that's what I've felt like I've been able to do over the last couple of weeks.”
Åberg, who played college golf at Texas Tech, came upon the pro golf scene quickly, winning a DP World Tour event and getting picked to play in the 2023 Ryder Cup for Europe before ever competing in a major championship.
He won the Sanderson Farms Championship on the PGA Tour that year, finished second to Scottie Scheffler at the 2024 Masters, and last year won the Genesis Invitational (played at Torrey Pines). He also finished seventh at the Masters, which means he has two top-10s in his only two appearances at Augusta National.
His second-round 63 here was particularly impressive as he picked up 7.3 strokes on the field tee-to-green, the best of the day and his most in any single round on the PGA Tour.
On Saturday he eagled the 11th hole to move to 11 under on the par 5s this week, the best in the field.
Åberg, whose makes his U.S. home in the area and practices at TPC Sawgrass, is leading the field in strokes gained tee-to-green and is third in strokes gained off the tee. He is also third in approaches to the green.
“I feel like my iron play has been pretty good lately, the last couple weeks,” he said. “I saw it at Bay Hill as well last week. Super pleased with the way I was hitting it.”
More Golf from Sports Illustrated
- Bryson DeChambeau Wins LIV Golf Singapore Playoff After Opponent Misses 2-Foot Putt
- LIV Golf Singapore Final Payouts, Prize Money and Results: Bryson DeChambeau Wins
- Scottie Scheffler Looked More Like His Old Self in Round 3 at Players
- Ludvig Åberg Stumbles at End of Third Round of the Players Championship But Still Has Comfy Lead
This article was originally published on www.si.com as Ludvig Åberg Closes in on Career-Defining Victory at Players Championship.
