Swedish golfer Ludwig Aberg He was looking to make history Sunday as the first Masters rookie to win a green jacket since Fozzie Zoeller in 1979.
The achievement would have been a big deal in his home country.
And in Tallahassee, too.
The 24-year-old recently moved to Tallahassee, where he lives with his friend and former Florida State golfer Vince Norman.
Aberg also plays in Seminole Legacy Golf Club
Aberg looked home at Augusta National Golf Club, where he shot a 7-under-par 281 (73-69-70-69) over 72 holes to finish second and four strokes behind winner Scotty Scheffler.
According to ESPN, Aberg is the first player to finish second in his debut since Keegan Bradley won the 2011 PGA Championship.
“This is my first major championship, you never know what it's going to be like until you've been there and experienced it,” Aberg told Golfweek. “I think this week has given me a lot of experience and a lot of lessons learned in terms of these things.
“It makes me really hungry, and makes me want to do it over and over again.”
Aberg's only blemish Sunday came during his 3-under-par 69 on the par-4 11th. His approach shot bounced left into the pond, and he made a double-bogey 6 and fell 4 shots behind Scheffler.
However, Aberg played 2-under over the final seven holes to secure the runner-up spot. With his 12th-place finish, Aberg earned an invitation to the 2025 Masters.
He earned $2.6 million for his second place finish.
Aberg shares his decision to move to Tallahassee
Aberg is a rising star in professional golf, enjoying a whirlwind three months last fall.
In September 2023, he birdied four of the last five holes to claim his first professional title at the Omega European Masters in Switzerland. European captain Luke Donald then announced him as one of his six choices to captain Team Europe for the 2023 Ryder Cup.
Aberg went 2-2-0 and helped Europe win the event over the United States, 16th1⁄2-111⁄2.
Last November, Åberg won his first PGA Tour tournament at the RSM Classic, shooting back-to-back rounds of 61 over the weekend to finish at 29 under par. This win earned Aberg an invitation to the 2024 Masters.
He also shared his intention with the media after the RSM Classic in St. Simons Island, Georgia, to move to Tallahassee.
“So I’m moving to Tallahassee, Florida,” Aberg said.
“One of my good friends, Vincent Norman, who also plays here, asked me if I wanted to come into his guest room and I said yes. So he will be the owner for a while. It would be nice to kind of maintain that social connection and social network that I had.” In college and staying with him for a short time.”
Aberg was one of eight players within five shots of leader Schaeffler heading into Sunday's final round. Max Homa, Collin Morikawa and Tommy Fleetwood tied for third at 4 under.
Aberg played golf at Texas Tech and rose to No. 1 in the World Amateur Golf Rankings for the first time in September 2022.
He turned professional in June 2023 and is currently No. 9 in the PGA Tour world rankings. CBS commentators during Sunday's national broadcast noted Aberg's relaxed demeanor and smile during the final round.
“Very sweet and genuine,” Amy Pond, the NFL's women's golf coach, said Sunday of Aberg.
“It's easy to like him. What you see on TV is him.”
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