Ludvig Aberg will be one of three Team Europe Ryder Cup rookies in Rome later this month after being named as one of Luke Donald’s six wildcards.
A former world No 1 amateur golfer, Aberg recently clinched his first European Tour title at Crans-sur-Sierre in Switzerland with a final-round 64, but then squandered a lead at the BMW PGA Championship when posting four-over on the last day.
The other two rookies, Sepp Straka and Nicolai Hojgaard, came close to adding their names to the automatic qualification list, but were still handed a captain’s pick to ensure they will be in the Italian capital at the end of September.
The final places on the team are taken by European stalwarts Tommy Fleetwood, Justin Rose and Shane Lowry.
Team Europe
Automatic qualifiers
- Rory McIlroy
- Jon Rahm
- Viktor Hovland
- Tyrrell Hatton
- Robert MacIntyre
- Matt Fitzpatrick
Captain’s picks
- Tommy Fleetwood
- Justin Rose
- Shane Lowry
- Ludvig Aberg
- Sepp Straka
- Nicolai Hojgaard
How Donald was ‘blown away’ by rookie Aberg
That experienced trio required call-ups from Donald after Europe’s last two automatic qualifiers, Matt Fitzpatrick and Robert MacIntyre, also booked their spot in Switzerland, although both would probably wish they had done it in more spectacular style.
Fitzpatrick stood on the 15th tee of the final round in Switzerland leading by three after back-to-back birdies, only for Aberg to card four straight birdies and overhaul him for the title.
MacIntyre meanwhile limped over the finish line to make the Ryder Cup team, finishing in a tie for 55th at the European Masters, but neither Adrian Meronk (13th) or Yannik Paul (20th), his two nearest contenders for an automatic place, were able to produce the top-three finish they needed to catch him in the points list.
On his decision to pick Aberg, Donald said: “We obviously knew what he was doing in the college scene. You look at what he did those four years the only comparables really were Viktor Hovland and Jon Rahm in the last 20 years. He’s that good.
“So we were obviously keeping an eye on him and then I played with him in Detroit and was blown away by his game.
“He continued to progress and I challenged him to come over to Europe and play a couple of weeks. He finished fifth in Czechia and obviously you know what he did yesterday, four birdies in the last five holes [to win the European Masters].
“It was like a walk in the park for him and obviously for someone that’s so inexperienced, it’s just so so impressive.”
Aberg said: “It’s been quite a lot these last couple of months but it’s been so exciting and I can’t wait.
“If you told me a couple of months ago that I was going to be in these conversations, I probably wouldn’t have believed you, but I’m super fortunate to be in this position and I can’t thank the captain and the vice captains enough.”
Meronk might have expected to be handed a reprieve by Donald with a captain’s pick given he won the Italian Open at Ryder Cup venue Marco Simone Golf and Country Club earlier this year and finished in a tie for second there in 2021.
Meet the 6ft 3in Swedish alpha about to unleash Norse hell on the Ryder Cup
By Kevin Garside, i’s chief sports correspondent
Ludvig Aberg is the superstar of whom you have probably never heard. Don’t worry. Chiselled Swedish alphas standing 6ft 3ins tall have a way of being noticed. Think Dolph Lundgren of the fairways, or a present-day Ragnar Lothbrok about to unleash Norse hell on the American Ryder Cup foe in Rome.
Even before the stalking, capture and eventual conquest of overnight leader Matt Fitzpatrick to win the Omega European Masters on Sunday, Aberg was very much a part of the skipper’s thinking. Like Donald, a European pioneer of the species at Northwestern University in Chicago, Aberg is a product of the American collegiate system, reaching the world No 1 amateur ranking. He also emulated Jon Rahm as the only winner of consecutive Ben Hogan Awards, as well as the clean sweep of Jack Nicklaus and Fred Haskins Awards in 2023.
His success in Texas earned Aberg his PGA Tour card as the inaugural winner of the collegiate order of merit. In his seven events on the PGA Tour thus far Aberg has better stats than Scottie Scheffler and Rory McIlroy, the world’s highest ranked golfers, in the Strokes Gained: Off The Tee metric. Aberg’s effortless length coupled with his accuracy are major factors in Donald’s calculations around Marco Simone Golf and Country Club’s narrow fairways.
Read Kevin’s full analysis of Aberg here
Ryder Cup Team Europe player profiles
Jon Rahm (Spain)
- Age: 28
- Caps: 2 (2018, 2021)
- Record: Won 4 Lost 3 Halved 1
Won three of his first five events of the year and then added his second major title in the Masters in April, also finishing tied second in the Open Championship. Won just one of his three matches in Paris but it was a vital one, beating Tiger Woods in the singles. Europe’s stand-out performer at Whistling Straits with three-and-a-half points from five matches.
Viktor Hovland (Norway)
- Age: 25
- Caps: 1 (2021)
- Record: Won 0 Lost 3 Halved 2
Earned just a point from five matches at Whistling Straits and will be expected to deliver much more in Rome after ending the season with back-to-back wins in the BMW Championship and Tour Championship to claim the FedEx Cup title. Partnered three different players in 2021, giving Donald either welcome flexibility or a selection headache.
Rory McIlroy (Northern Ireland)
- Age: 34
- Caps: 6 (2010, 2012, 2014, 2016, 2018, 2021)
- Record: Won 12 Lost 12 Halved 4
Was in tears after winning his singles at Whistling Straits as he felt he had let the side down by suffering three heavy defeats over the first two days. Produced a brilliant birdie-birdie finish to win the Scottish Open in July and ended the PGA Tour season with 10 consecutive top-10 finishes.
Tyrrell Hatton (England)
- Age: 31
- Caps: 2 (2018, 2021)
- Record: Won 2 Lost 4 Halved 1
Without a win since January 2021, but qualified via the World Points list after a consistent season which included a runners-up finish in the Players Championship, nine top 10s and just one missed cut. Played four matches at Whistling Straits but his caddie’s fitness following a knee operation could be a factor at a hilly venue in Rome.
Matt Fitzpatrick (England)
- Age: 29
- Caps: 2 (2016, 2021)
- Record: Won 0 Lost 5 Halved 0
Has a miserable record in the Ryder Cup to date, sitting out the opening day at Hazeltine and then losing his foursomes match with Henrik Stenson before being sent out last in the singles and losing to 2023 US captain Zach Johnson. Also lost all three matches at Whistling Straits but won the US Open in 2022 and will surely be picked for a fourballs session this time around.
Robert MacIntyre (Scotland)
Won the Italian Open at host venue Marco Simone last September and solidified his position with second in the Scottish Open, where he made a stunning birdie on the last before being denied by McIlroy. Fourth in the penultimate qualifying event after playing with Donald the first two days.
Tommy Fleetwood (England)
- Age: 32
- Caps: 2 (2018, 2021)
- Record: Won 4, Lost 2, Halved 2
Made his debut in 2018 and partnered Francesco Molinari to four wins, three of them against an American pairing containing Tiger Woods. Ran out of steam in the singles and was beaten 6&4 by Tony Finau. Without Molinari alongside, lost one and halved two of his matches in Wisconsin.
Shane Lowry (Ireland)
- Age: 36
- Caps: 1 (2021)
- Record: Won 1 Lost 2 Halved 0
Went into the last event in the final automatic qualifying place in 2021 but was pushed out by Bernd Wiesberger and had to rely on a wild card. Won the first qualifying event, the 2022 BMW Championship, this time around but still required a pick after recording just one top-10 finish in 2023.
Justin Rose (England)
- Age: 43
- Caps: 5 (2008, 2012, 2014, 2016, 2018)
- Record: Won 13 Lost 8 Halved 2
The former US Open champion was overlooked for a wild card in 2021 but ended a four-year victory drought on the PGA Tour in February’s AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am. Previously formed a strong partnership with Stenson, whose switch to LIV Golf cost him the captaincy of the side for Rome.
Sepp Straka (Austria)
The second Austrian to play in the Ryder Cup after Wiesberger, Straka won his second PGA Tour title in July and followed it a fortnight later with a tie for second in the Open. Also finished seventh in the US PGA Championship and was part of the victorious Continental Europe side in January’s Hero Cup.
Ludvig Aberg
Former world number one amateur who finished first in the PGA Tour University rankings to earn his card and only turned professional in June. Shot 65 and 67 alongside Donald in the first two rounds of the Rocket Mortgage Classic and won the final qualifying event in Switzerland with a closing 64.
Nicolai Hojgaard (Denmark)
Finished 16th on the World Points list and just 25th on the European list, but won the first Italian Open at Marco Simone in September 2021 and was fifth in the same event this year. Finished third and fifth in the final two qualifying events and is ranked second in scoring average and strokes gained off the tee.
With additional reporting from PA.