Ludvig Aberg Hype At Ryder Cup Has Officially Gone Too Far And Golf Folks Need Reality Check | Mark Harris
The hype surrounding Ludvig Aberg ahead of his debut at the Ryder Cup is well warranted. The 23-year-old had an outstanding amateur and college career at Texas Tech and has already won once on the DP World Tour since turning professional in June.
The Swede has long been touted by practically everyone remotely tied to the golf world as 'the next great European player,' and he very well could be, but amid all of the excitement surrounding Aberg, the concept of reality seems to have been forgotten, at least by some.
Expectations for Ludvig Aberg at the 2023 Ryder Cup are out of this world. (Photo by Ross Kinnaird/Getty Images)
Dylan Dethier of Golf Magazine shared a tweet shortly after it was announced that Aberg would be teeing it up in Friday morning's foursomes session revealing that a person close to the European team has never been more intimidated by a golfer in their entire life. The person was also quoted saying the Americans are in "for a fu-king shock."
I understand that a person "close to Team Europe" is going to hype up Aberg as much as humanly possible - and that's likely the sole reason for the quote - but saying a player who has hit exactly zero shots in a Ryder Cup or major championship is the most intimidating player you've ever laid eyes on is way, way overboard.
For starters, Brooks Koepka is built like an NFL linebacker and has won five major championships, I'd say he may be a bit more intimidating than a player who was playing college golf earlier this year. Aberg's teammate, Jon Rahm, is also a two-time major winner and a person that exists.
That's not a shot at Aberg, it's a shot at the person who's put him on this pedestal of intimidation.
As Dethier noted in response, maybe it's the pure mystery of Aberg being a guy who looks like he was put together to swing a golf club that is so intimidating.
The one thing about Aberg's intimidation factor is that it doesn't matter if the people in Europe's camp find him intimidating, all that matters is if the Americans he battles this week find him intimidating.
Now that I've written this story I'm fully aware Aberg will now go unbeaten this week and be the deciding player that wins the Europeans the cup back, but I'm willing to sacrifice my mentions for the sake of made-up intimidation.
Follow Mark Harris on X @ItIsMarkHarris