Watch: Ludvig Aberg snaps his driver, ends up with eagle putt at Valero Texas Open en route to a 67
SAN ANTONIO, Texas — Ludvig Aberg has a silky smooth swing, but don’t be fooled, the Swedish star packs a healthy dose of power into every cut.
And that was never more evident than Saturday during the third round of the Valero Texas Open at TPC San Antonio.
The Texas Tech product was swinging away on the risk/reward No. 17 at the Greg Norman-designed Oaks Course, a 347-yard hole par-4. But when Aberg made contact, his driver head snapped clean off. Did it mean disaster? Not for Aberg, who has been as steady as a rock this season, making the cut in all seven of his starts.
WHAT?!
Ludvig Åberg's driver head BREAKS and he still drives the green at the par-4 17th. pic.twitter.com/POGGlR9d1q
— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) April 6, 2024
His drive bounced just to the right of the green and hopped to within 11 feet, giving him an eagle opportunity on a hole that could have been a mess. Although he missed the eagle putt, he tapped in for his third birdie in eight holes, getting to 4 under for the tournament.
“I don’t know. I don’t know,” Aberg said when asked what happened. “I thought I put a pretty good swing on it. I’ve never seen that happen before and it was quite bizarre.”
Aberg, who already has a win under his belt at the PGA Tour’s 2023 RSM Classic, is a Titleist player who had been using the TSR2 (9 degrees) with a Fujikura Ventus Black 6 X shaft through the Players Championship.
More: Ludvig Aberg on his rapid rise, earliest Masters memory and being a rookie in the majors
A PGA Tour rules official was kind enough to run back to the locker room to grab Aberg’s backup driver, one that he’s played a few rounds with in the past. He bombed a drive on the 18th hole of the day, and even though he only managed par, he finished the day with a 67, and he sits firmly inside the top 10 at 6 under for the event.
