It is with some question marks around him that Ludvig Åberg has returned to the place where he got his big breakthrough a year ago.
On the one hand: In February, he won the big tournament The Genesis Invitational at Torrey Pines outside San Diego.
On the other hand: Ahead of Masters, Åberg has missed the "cut" twice in a row, something that has never happened before in his professional career.
Yes, it's been a bit up and down. San Diego was the biggest win I've had so far in my career, the highest of the highs I've experienced. And to have missed two qualifying rounds is probably a low point in my career, says Åberg as he sits at the press conference podium in Augusta National's impressive press building.
He radiates no worry after the recent tournaments, rather the same calm self-confidence that is a bit of a hallmark of the 25-year-old.
"Nice to know"
And the somewhat sensational major debut last year, when Ludvig Åberg was in shared lead after half the final round, is of course a fine memory to bring up in this situation.
I didn't quite know what to expect, but it exceeded my expectations enormously, says the blue-yellow star.
I've used it a bit in my preparations. It's really nice to know that you can, that you deep down know what you're capable of doing. Before I did it, I didn't know, but now I do.
Ludvig Åberg has been working on some technical details in his swing lately and feels that he is on the right track. And it's rarely the long game that fails the Swede, who has been praised time and time again for his almost perfect swing.
A just as important key will be the putting, where Åberg's performances tend to vary more.
Putted well last year
Last week in San Antonio, the game with the putter was far from top class. But with Augusta National's notoriously tricky greens, Åberg has a little love story after last year's success, when he was statistically the second-best putter in the field.
Yes, they're tricky and there's a lot of slope, he says.
A lot of it is about preparation on the putting green, being able to be comfortable with starting a three-foot putt one and a half cups outside the hole. It's a bit different, but also very fun.
Ludvig Åberg starts his first round in Masters at 19.12 on Thursday, Swedish time.
The Sentry – fifth.
Farmers Insurance Open – 42nd.
AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-am – withdrew due to illness.
The Genesis Invitational – winner.
Arnold Palmer Invitational – 22nd.
The Players Championship – missed the cut.
Valero Texas Open – missed the cut.
+ Ludvig Åberg played his first major tournament. After a slightly hesitant start, he climbed in the field and was briefly in shared lead during the final round.
+ Åberg then made a fateful mistake when he hit his approach shot into the water on the 11th, resulting in a double bogey.
+ He finished solo second on seven under par, four strokes behind world number one Scottie Scheffler.
