Ludvig Åberg might have a leg up on the competition at the Players Championship.
Because he resides in Ponte Vedra, Fla., TPC Sawgrass is just a hop and a skip away, allowing him to get on the course “every now and then.”
“I’ve seen the golf course in probably every wind possible,” the Swede said, “which I know this week we’re going to have some different winds. Is there an advantage to it? Maybe.”
It appears there is, though. Halfway through the Players, Åberg leads Xander Schauffele by two strokes at 12 under par after what he acknowledged might have been the best start to a tournament round in his career.
The 26-year-old opened his day birdie-eagle-birdie-birdie en route to a front-nine 29, capped with a chip-in eagle from the greenside bunker on No. 9. In 18 holes, he shot 9-under 63, one stroke shy of the course record; however, it’s the lowest 36-hole score of his career.
Yet, Åberg spoke modestly of his round afterward.
“I think overall I felt like I was striking it quite nice,” said Åberg, who’s first in the field in strokes-gained off the tee and total, and third in approach. “I kind of got away with a few tee balls in the middle of the round where I wasn’t hitting the fairways necessarily.
“But yeah, I think I got away with a few for sure. But overall, I feel like my iron play has been pretty good lately, the last couple weeks.”
Chip-in eagle to tie the nine-hole TPC Sawgrass record 🤯
— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) March 13, 2026
Ludvig with a front-nine 29 @THEPLAYERS to tie the lead!
📺 Golf Channel pic.twitter.com/CeLsO82cLO
When Åberg turned pro in 2023, expectations were lofty. He was the top-ranked amateur in the world while at Texas Tech and just months into his professional career was named to the European Ryder Cup before ever playing in a major. Nearly a month later, he won his maiden PGA Tour title at the RSM Classic.
Last February, Åberg earned his second and biggest win of his career at the Genesis Invitational, but struggles ensued. Aside from a seventh-place finish at the Masters, he had only two top 10s the rest of the season.
His season got off to a bumpy start with a withdrawal at the American Express with an illness. Since then, however, the world No. 21 has steadily regained his form, coming off a T3 last week at the Arnold Palmer Invitational.
“I saw some nice things over the weekend at Pebble [Beach] in my game [in a T37 finish],” he said. “I saw some nice things at [the Genesis, finishing T20] even though I got off to a slow start in the tournament. Yeah, just kind of progressively getting better.
“I feel like I’ve understood a little bit more what's important for me in my golf swing and kind of sticking to that, not necessarily trying to look away other ways around it, and keeping it very simple. I think my mind is very good when it’s simple, and when things are very easy.”
Such was the case Friday at TPC Sawgrass, just down the road from home. Now, Åberg hopes his familiarity makes him the first player to convert a 36-hole lead into a win at TPC Sawgrass since Rory McIlroy in 2019.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as Ludvig Åberg Grabs Players Championship Lead After Scintillating Friday 63.
