‘And I’m thinking to myself, how did I get here?’ asks Ludvig Aberg with wide-eyed wonderment and it’s not a bad question considering our conversation has wandered from Steven Gerrard to Sir Andy Murray’s golf swing to the possibility of a dream coming true.
There is also an unexpected detour to his love for Bondi Rescue, a cult Australian TV programme, but first Aberg – the world’s most exciting young golfer – is taking us vividly to the moment he knew life had changed in April 2024, on Augusta’s picture-perfect eleventh fairway.
Aberg had turned professional 10 months earlier and, in that time, he had accomplished what many tour pros could only dream about: he had been part of a successful European Ryder Cup team and won the European Masters, showing why there had been such hype around his rise.
But this young Swede is like the rest of us. When good things happen so quickly that it almost seems impossible to process, there comes a point when reflection must be taken. For Aberg, it was a stroll with Rory McIlroy, someone at that point he had only really been accustomed to seeing on TV.
‘Life has changed a lot, very fast,’ he says. ‘I remember I had this moment at last year’s Masters. I was playing practice with Rory and we were walking down number 11. He was with Harry (Diamond, his caddie) and, just for a moment, I slowed down behind them to watch.
‘You know the run around 11, 12, 13 (Amen Corner) – I’m looking at all thinking: ‘I only turned pro a year ago.’ I couldn’t believe it. It was such a cool moment.
‘It will stick with me for a long time and it’s important to remember. You can’t ever take these things for granted.’
You can see Aberg, who actually finished second that week, means it. He has reaped rich dividends already through golf but it is the history that provides his greatest inspiration and what price would you give for him and McIlroy to be walking down the 18th together this Sunday?
We can discuss that in due course but we have to return to not taking things for granted, for there was another ”is this really happening moment?” when he was approached to give marks out of 10 for a YouTube feature on the state of Murray’s game.
Murray, ferocious competitor that he is, would love to get into a position where he could try to compete in next year’s Regional Qualifying events for The Open and, from what Aberg saw, it might not be the flight of fancy it sounds.
‘Hey, that swing was really good!’ Aberg says, laughing. ‘Like it was really, really good! Man, I was impressed!
They told us: ‘be as honest as you can with him!’ but I just didn’t know what to say. I think he’s going to be able to play really good golf in the future.’
Another man who would love to say he could do play to that level in the future is Gerrard, who was a bigger figure in his childhood than any golfer.
‘Gerrard was my big hero growing up,’ he declares, proudly. ‘I played football myself and I loved him as a player. But I loved he was the captain and he’d carry the team.
‘I supported Liverpool because of him. I’m a fan and always will be. The last few weeks have been awful. I just hope everyone is ok.’
The reference to Diogo Jota’s tragic death is the only time in this conversation, arranged by his sponsors Mercedes, that his demeanour changes.
Aberg is respectful and courteous, a man who impresses with the clarity of his words and thoughts.
It has been a privilege to see him striking balls so crisply on the range in recent days and the vibes he gives suggest he might not be too far away from emulating his compatriot Henrik Stenson, who made himself a national hero in 2016 when going head-to-head with Phil Mickelson at Troon.
‘Oh I remember that day,’ he says enthusiastically. ‘We usually have a tournament that weekend in Sweden; in 2016 it finished on the Saturday, so we sat down to watch every shot. I thought that shootout was the coolest thing I had ever seen.
‘Henrik has the biggest profile in Swedish golf and he’s done so much for the game. That was the pinnacle. A couple of months later, Henrik almost won the Olympics as well, so for a little 15-year-old, it was incredible to see that. This is the tournament that has such history and means so much.’
You can tell, clearly, that Aberg believes his game is in the right shape to contend. He has power and sorcery, intuition and imagination and there won’t be any excuses if it doesn’t go as expected. Deep down, though, you suspect he will be just fine.
‘I definitely feel like I have the tools and the capabilities,’ he says. ‘The experiences I’ve had recently have made me feel like I can do it. I want to win here and I want to perform. Anyone who is in the field should be thinking like that.
‘If there was one thing I learnt last year it was ‘it is what it is’ with the weather. If it rains, I’ll get my rain gear. If it’s windy, I’ll keep the ball flight a little bit lower. It’s all part of it. I will be ready for whatever comes my way.’
Ludvig Aberg is an Ambassador for Mercedes-Benz – proud Patron of The Open
