For much of the Genesis Invitational’s final round, it seemed unlikely that Maverick McNealy wouldn’t come away with the victory.
The 29-year-old Californian was 9 under through 13 holes. And though he wouldn’t card another birdie all day, it looked like McNealy dodged a bullet by saving par on his final two holes after getting into trouble off the tee. However, missing a 17-footer for birdie on the last proved to be costly.
“Now it looks like it’s on Ludvig (Åberg) to win the tournament outright at 12 (under),” Tiger Woods said on the CBS broadcast.
The Big Cat was spot on.
MORE: Final results, payouts from the Genesis Invitational
The 25-year-old Swede, who started the day one stroke back of Patrick Rodgers’s 54-hole lead, hung around all afternoon and tied the lead with three straight birdies on Nos. 13-15. Needing a birdie to win on Torrey Pines’s par-5 finishing hole, he knocked his second shot to 68 feet and two-putted, sinking a 7-footer for his second PGA Tour win and first since November 2023.
A birdie for the win @TheGenesisInv!
— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) February 16, 2025
Soak it in, Ludvig 🏆 pic.twitter.com/H8KkZNqiON
It’s redemption for Åberg at Torrey Pines. A month ago at the Farmers Insurance Open on the same course (the Genesis was moved in the wake of the Los Angeles wildfires), he grabbed the Day 1 lead. However, he finished T42 after catching an illness.
The next week, his sickness—still a mystery exactly what the diagnosis was—got worse, and Åberg withdrew at Pebble Beach. Earlier this week, he revealed it caused him to lose 8 pounds in two days.
“It's just sort of the comeback from the last couple weeks,” Aberg said following his final-round 66.”I sort of felt like I wasn't really myself, wasn't feeling great, wasn't swinging great, sort of struggled a bit at home last week with how I was playing. Was nice to come here sort of starting to feel like myself again and physically getting there. It means a lot. This is the best feeling in golf and to be able to do what I did today is definitely going to help me going forward in the future.”
A little lighter and finally healthy, Åberg was able to flip the script at Torrey and show why he’s one of the sport’s brightest young stars by notching the biggest win of his career in his 40th Tour start.
And he should have no problem gaining back the weight.
“I feel like this is my last day on the West Coast for quite some time,” the world No. 6 said, “so I think In-N-Out would be appropriate.
McNealy, meanwhile, was mostly positive after falling short of the win.
“I’m really proud of my effort,” he said following a final-round 64, the low round of the day and his career-best, “especially being outside the cutline through 27 holes. Had to play through that sideways rain in the back of the wave on Thursday and to give myself this opportunity, I’m really proud of that.”
But McNealy knew that the player on his tail all afternoon was not one to be counted out.
“I don’t know if there’s any conclusion you can draw there other than the fact that (Åberg’s) a pretty darn good golfer," McNealy said.
This article was originally published on www.si.com as After Severe Illness, Ludvig Åberg Catches Maverick McNealy for Dramatic Genesis Win.
