San Diego is known for its idyllic weather and views of the Pacific Ocean. It’s also the home of Torrey Pines Golf Course, one of the toughest tracks on the PGA Tour.
It’s little wonder why Ludvig Aberg, who hails from a country more than 5,000 miles away, is in love with the city.
“Yeah, San Diego’s my favorite place in the world,” the Swede offered to reporters Tuesday ahead of this week’s Farmers Insurance Open. “I just love — it’s almost like you’re looking down at the water and it gives me a little bit of peace. I like coming here, it’s a big-boy golf course and really looking forward to it.”
The 25-year-old will be one of the favorites at this week’s tournament. At No. 6 in the Official World Golf Ranking, he’s the second-highest ranked player in the field behind No. 4 Hideki Matsuyama of Japan, and in his tournament debut in 2024, Aberg tied for ninth.
Torrey Pines’ South Course — which hosts the final two rounds after players split Thursday and Friday between the North and South Courses — is considered the tougher of the two, and Aberg is wary of the length and thickness of the rough there.
“Being able to drive it well is going to be important,” Aberg said. “Some of these holes are going to be hard to reach from the rough. If you get some, you can draw some thick lies, can’t really reach some of the par 4s. Then you’ve just got to hit the shots and execute.”
Aberg backed up his breakout 2023 season with a stellar 2024 that featured eight top-10s and runner-up finishes at the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am, the Masters and the BMW Championship. All that was missing was a victory, something to add to his breakthrough at the 2023 RSM Classic.
Getting off on the right foot at some of the more difficult courses is a key to Aberg.
“Obviously playing these events here on the West Coast, you’ve got Torrey, Pebble and a few other ones that are really hard courses,” he said. “If you can get off to a nice start, for me it’s all about, yes, I’m very result-driven, but I also want to be able to feel like my golf swing is working the way I want to and I’m able to hit the shots that I want to without — if I’m pleased with that, hopefully, results will come.”
The PGA Tour may be returning to San Diego in mid-February. Multiple outlets reported Monday that the Genesis Invitational, which needs to be relocated from Los Angeles due to the ongoing wildfires in the area, will be staged at Torrey Pines.
That would give Aberg an extra opportunity to visit his happy place.
“No pushback from me,” he said. “Bring it here, please.”
–Field Level Media
