Sunday’s forecast at Pebble Beach calls for inches of rain, temperatures in the low 50s, wind gusts up to 60 miles per hour, and a whole lot of misery.
Ludvig Åberg ready to embrace Pebble Beach elements thanks to upbringing
Young Ludvig Åberg may not have much experience on the PGA Tour, but he has plenty of experience playing in the cold, rain, and wind.
Jack Milko has been playing golf since he was five years old. He has yet to record a hole-in-one, but he did secure an M.A. in Sports Journalism from St. Bonaventure University.
But the PGA Tour may not even play Sunday. Chief Referee Gary Young said he and his team would assess the course and conditions at 5:15 a.m. PST Sunday, then decide. The final round could be postponed until Monday, but even then, an already saturated Pebble Beach course will have even more water on it.
Regardless of what transpires, the young Swedish phenom Ludvig Åberg will be ready, despite his inexperience on the PGA Tour.
“I have played a lot of golf in bad weather, so maybe that’s why [I can handle tough conditions],” Åberg said after shooting a bogey-free, 5-under 67 Saturday.
“Even though the weather looks pretty bad tomorrow, I think you’ve got to be prepared to play, be prepared to play a rough round of golf where the weather is going to be windy and raining, and then just be okay with that. Then, whatever happens, happens. We’ll see what happens, but I’ll be ready to play tomorrow.”
Throughout his young career thus far, nothing seems to faze the 23-year-old Åberg.
The Ryder Cup did not, nor did holding a 54-hole lead at the RSM Classic last fall.
And the final round conditions of the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am will not fluster him either.
He is more concerned about Wyndham Clark, who blitzed Pebble Beach with a historic 12-under 60 on Saturday. At 17-under par, Clark holds a one-shot lead over Åberg, who held a share of the lead through 36 holes.
“Didn’t quite catch Wyndham coming down the last couple holes, but felt like overall it was a good day,” Åberg said of his round.
“My patience [was key]. I didn’t try to force anything, I didn’t try to hit shots that I didn’t feel like I could pull off. I felt like we did that great today and yesterday. And hopefully, with what the weather looks like, I think that’s going to be key as well for the last round.”
The entire golfing world will need to be patient with the PGA Tour as it assesses the conditions on early Sunday. And, who knows, perhaps more patience will be needed in the event that the final round happens on Monday or beyond.
That happened last year, when Justin Rose triumphed at Pebble Beach.
But this time around, Åberg faces a one-shot deficit, and with 18 holes left to play, anything can happen. Åberg and Clark will be joined by Matthieu Pavon in the final pairing, regardless of what day they play.
Jack Milko is a golf staff writer for SB Nation’s Playing Through. Be sure to check out @_PlayingThrough for more golf coverage. You can follow him on Twitter @jack_milko as well.
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