AUGUSTA. Ga. — Few Masters Tournament rookies have put themselves in the position Ludvig Aberg is in now.
The 24-year-old from Sweden sits alone in fourth place; just three shots off leader Scottie Scheffler through 54 holes, powered by a 69-70 over Friday and Saturday.
He’s looking to become the first Masters rookie to win a green jacket since Fuzzy Zoeller in 1979.
What has worked so well for Aberg so far? Well, for starters, while the windy conditions have been detrimental to most of the field, it reminds him of his days at Texas Tech University.
“Yeah, we were actually saying that yesterday, that it was a normal day in Lubbock,” he said. “Obviously, we played in a lot of wind in Lubbock and yesterday was the same. I’m not sure if that really translates, but I guess I’m a little bit more used to it.”
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Aberg played an excellent third round, leading off with a 33 on the first nine. He birdied Nos. 2, 5 and 9. After a birdie on No. 13, he hit a bit of a speed bump with back-to-back bogeys on Nos. 14 and 15. On the par-5 No. 15, he began with an excellent tee shot, but airmailed the green on his second. His subsequent chip failed to reach the green. Another chip and a three-putt later, he dropped to 2-under for the day, where he stayed.
He credited his caddie, Joe Skovron, with their strategy this week.
“I think what me and Joe have been doing, we’re both very disciplined. We’re not trying to force anything,” Aberg said. “We’re not trying to go for pins, and we’re not trying to make decisions that will cost us, I guess. We’re trying to take calculated risks all the time. I feel like we’ve been very disciplined toward our targets, and hopefully we’ll be able to do that again tomorrow.”
Does that strategy change come Sunday?
“Yeah, obviously keep an eye on the leaderboard and see where we’re at. You can’t really play Augusta in a different way even though you have to,” he said. “I think you’re never trying to force anything. You’re always trying to put yourself in the right positions and try to make the putts. I think that’s what we’re going to try to do tomorrow even if we’re tied for the lead or two back or four back, I guess.”
There are eight players within five shots of the lead, making for a crowded leaderboard heading into a Sunday at Augusta National Golf Club.