Ryder Cup star Ludvig Åberg produced a brilliant late birdie burst to snatch a one-shot victory over Maverick McNealy at the PGA Tour’s Genesis Invitational.
Åberg went into the final round three strokes off the pace and appeared out of contention when McNealy, starting five back, charged up the leaderboard with nine birdies in the first 13 holes.
McNealy bogeyed the par-four next and failed to find any more birdies over his closing holes, seeing him card a final-round 64 and set the clubhouse target at 11 under, as Åberg pulled level with three consecutive birdies from the 13th.
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Ludvig Åberg kept his composure on the 18th green at Torrey Pines to make a final-hole birdie and snatch Genesis Invitational victory
Åberg missed a chance from inside 10 feet at the 17th and remained tied for the lead heading to the par-five last, where he found the green in two before two-putting for a winning birdie to secure the second PGA Tour title of his career.
The 25-year-old’s final-round 66 saw him end the week on 12 under and a shot clear of McNealy, while world No 1 Scottie Scheffler – playing alongside Rory McIlroy – finished tied-third with overnight leader Patrick Rodgers after chipping in twice on his way to a six-under 66.
A closer look at the numbers behind Ludvig Åberg’s Genesis Invitational victory
How Åberg pipped McNealy to Torrey Pines victory
McNealy had to hole from 38 feet just to save par at the first, then fired his approach to tap-in range at the par-four next to set up the first of five consecutive birdies to jump to eight under.
The 29-year-old added another at the par-five ninth to reach the turn in 30 and started his back nine with successive birdies, with McNealy then two-putting from 20 feet at the par-five 13th to go nine under for the day and temporarily go three ahead.
McNealy failed to get up and down from a greenside bunker at the par-four next and fell back to 11 under, giving hope to the chasing pack, with Åberg the player to take advantage after recovering from a mixed start.
Åberg saw two birdies over his first three holes cancelled out with successive bogeys from the fourth, with the Swede picking up shots at the seventh and ninth before scrambling a par at the 12th to avoid falling four strokes behind.
Ludvig Åberg went out in the penultimate group alongside Tony Finau, who finished tied-fifth
A two-putt birdie at the 13th and six-foot gain at the 14th were followed by a brilliant 25-foot birdie at the 15th, jumping Åberg alongside McNealy, before he two-putted from 70 feet at the last to close out an impressive victory.
The win is the fourth in five weeks by Europeans on the PGA Tour, following on from Sepp Straka, McIlroy and Thomas Detry, while victory is set to move Åberg as high as fourth in the latest world rankings.
Overnight leader Rodgers faded with back-to-back bogeys from the 11th during his final-round 71, seeing him end on nine under with Scheffler, while England’s Tommy Fleetwood shared fifth on eight under with Tommy Fleetwood, Tony Finau and Denny McCarthy.
McIlroy’s slim title bid was effectively ended with an opening-hole bogey, with the Northern Irishman experiencing a frustrating day on the greens as he stuttered to a level-par 72.
Åberg celebrates ‘special’ victory at Tiger’s event
“It was awesome,” Åberg told CBS. “It was a great fight. Obviously the golf course is tough but felt like I was in control of the ball flight all day and really proud of the way that I finished, it was really cool.
“The [par] putt on 12 was big because I think at that point the lead was at 12 [under] and it was a putt to stay at eight. I made it, which was nice, then made a couple of birdies.
Ludvig Åberg was presented with the trophy by tournament host Tiger Woods
“It was so much fun coming down the last few holes trying to win a tournament. It really is a special feeling.”
McNealy, who narrowly missed out on a second PGA Tour win in seven starts, said: “It [second] is more than I could have asked for to start the day.
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Tiger Woods pays an emotional tribute to his mother and thanked the players at the Genesis Invitational for their support.
“It was one of those things where I got on a roll early and there were some gettable flags. When you get on a roll you just don’t want to get off it and I tried to keep it going as long as possible.
“I had a few poor shots and an unlucky break or two at the end but definitely had a few things go my way early in this round and it was just a ton of fun to be up there, to have a chance. Ludvig played awesome.”
What’s next?
The PGA Tour heads to Mexico for the Mexico Open at VidantaWorld, with early coverage starting on Thursday from 3pm ahead of full coverage from 9pm. Get Sky Sports or stream with no contract on NOW.
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