World No.1 amateur Ludvig Aberg will make his professional debut in the RBC Canadian Open.
The 23-year-old Swede secured his PGA Tour card after claiming top spot on the PGA Tour University rankings last week, and he isn’t wasting any time putting it to use. He will tee it up at Oakdale Golf and Country Club alongside the likes of defending champion Rory McIlroy and 2022 US Open winner Matt Fitzpatrick.
The Texas Tech senior earned his PGA Tour card for the remainder of 2023 and 2024 after clinching the top spot in the year-long NCAA D-I National Championship. That was enough to make him the first player to ever gain a spot on the PGA Tour direct from college.
Aberg’s transition from amateur to professional has certain echoes of new LPGA Tour pro Rose Zhang insofar as each achieved accolades immediately before turning professional. In Aberg’s case that included becoming only the second player after Jon Rahm to win the Ben Hogan award in successive years.
Aberg strengthened his reputation as a future star of the game on the course, too, with four collegiate titles in 2023 and appearances in the DP World Tour’s Dubai Desert Classic and the Arnold Palmer Invitational and Valspar Classic on the PGA Tour.
His performance in the Arnold Palmer Invitational was particularly impressive given the strength of field as a designated event, and he more than held his own to finish T24, suggesting he has what it takes to handle the big occasion.
Aberg’s appearance continues a packed schedule as he also competed in US Open final qualifying earlier in the week. However, his gruelling 36 holes on the “Longest Day in Golf” didn’t finish as he would have hoped, as he missed out on a place in the Major at Los Angeles Country Club by three shots.
Other intriguing names in the field for the RBC Canadian Open include Bennett, who finished 63rd in his pro debut in The Memorial Tournament at Muirfield Village, and PGA Championship hero Michael Block.
