Friendship is a wonderful thing. Sometimes they’ll get you a free beer, or maybe you can crash on a couch if you’re from out of town. Or maybe, if you’re friends with the exact right person, they’ll surprise you with a trip to Augusta National.
Now, none of my friends has done this yet, but I’m sure one of them out there is putting together an itinerary to get us down to Augusta and tee off at the home of the Masters. And if not … Ludvig Åberg, are you looking for a new pal?
Åberg, about to play in his third Masters, had a golf buddy from Sweden coming to the United States for the first time and brought him to TPC Sawgrass for the Players AND then Augusta National for a surprise tee time. How does it get better than that?
Ludvig’s friend from Sweden had never been to the U.S. before.
His first time here? Going to Sawgrass and PLAYING AUGUSTA with him 🤯 pic.twitter.com/SKmOYpwkQ1
— Fore Play (@ForePlayPod) March 26, 2026
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“We grew up playing golf together. He came over for Players and stayed and hung out and watched the tournament. It was his first time in the U.S.,” Åberg explained on Fore Play. “And so he went to Sawgrass and watched the tournament and player dining and all those things. It was really cool … And then the week after, Tuesday night, he’s like, ‘Ah, do you think we can go play golf tomorrow again?’ And I hadn’t told him I had planned this trip to Augusta for Wednesday.
“And I’m like, yeah, you know, by the way, we’re actually going to Augusta tomorrow. And he like fell apart. This was like seven Tuesday night, and we went to Augusta the day after. He was so nervous. He was like, ‘I woke up at three, and I couldn’t go back to sleep.’”
We can’t blame him. Imagine wanting to play golf tomorrow, and you find out with no prep time that you’ll be teeing off at Augusta National in a matter of hours. It’s honestly a miracle he was able to step up to the first tee.
Looking back, it might’ve been better for Åberg to tell his friend that they were playing Augusta National the morning of, so they could both get enough sleep. And yet, we’re pretty sure his fellow Swede isn’t complaining after his first trip to the U.S.
This article was originally published on golfdigest.com
