For almost everyone on the PGA tour, the season is over and a little break is looming before the next season.
But not for Ludvig Åberg. The Swede is one of the 20 who are competing in the "Hero World Challenge" on the Bahamas. A tournament hosted by Tiger Woods himself, although he is not participating due to a back injury that puts a stop to it.
But there is no shortage of world stars for that. The tournament is only for the very best in the world, and the lowest ranked is Sepp Straka at 39th place.
"It has itched in my body"
The tough competition does not stop Åberg from being high up on the leaderboard after one round. The Swede came out lightning fast from the starting block, and excelled with three birdies on the first three holes.
After that, the 25-year-old cooled down somewhat. Seven straight pars followed, but after a fine finish, the Swedish world number five ended the day at 67 strokes, five under par. A round that means a shared third place after Thursday's play.
It's the first time I'm on the Bahamas, and it's super beautiful. So it's been cool, I've been watching the tournament over the years and got to see Viktor (Hovland) win a few times (2021 and 2022). So it's fun to be here, he says in Max's broadcast.
Åberg is doing his second tournament after a knee operation at the beginning of September, but shows no signs of rustiness.
It has itched in my body to play again, so it's nice to be back, he continues.
Million rain awaits the winner
Since the starting field is so small, there is no cut, and all players get to play all four days. The tournament does not give any points on any tours, but one can earn points on the world ranking and nice money. The winner of the tournament gets a million dollars, equivalent to approximately 10.8 million kronor.
In fact, no player will leave the tournament empty-handed. If you finish last of all, you still take home the "symbolic" sum of 120,000 dollars, approximately 1.3 million kronor.
American Cameron Young is leading at –8.
