Aberg upstages McIlroy and Hovland at BMW PGA Championship by shooting 4-under 68 in first round

Åberg made amends by playing the par-18th perfectly, tapping in for a seventh birdie of the day and finishing one shot better than No. 4-ranked Hovland (69) and the No. 2-ranked McIlroy (72).

Northern Ireland’s Rory McIlroy in action during the first round Action Images via Reuters/Paul Childs | Photo Credit: Action Images via Reuters

One bad swing cost Ludvig Åberg the chance of taking the clubhouse lead midway through the first round of the BMW PGA Championship on Thursday.

Still, the 23-year-old Swede with the golf world at his feet did enough on Day 1 of the European tour’s flagship event to suggest the hype around him is justified heading into his upcoming debut appearance in the Ryder Cup.

Åberg upstaged playing partners Rory McIlroy and Viktor Hovland by shooting a 4-under 68 that would have been so much better had he not pulled his tee shot out of bounds at the par-5 17th hole at Wentworth. He made double-bogey, giving a couple of shots back to the field soon after rolling in five straight birdies from No. 11 to ignite his round.

Åberg made amends by playing the par-18th perfectly, tapping in for a seventh birdie of the day and finishing one shot better than No. 4-ranked Hovland (69) and the No. 2-ranked McIlroy (72).

Åberg was two shots behind Scottish player Richie Ramsay, who was the best of the morning starters after making five birdies on the back nine.

Åberg, Hovland and McIlroy was one of the four groups made up entirely of Ryder Cup players as captain Luke Donald looks to improve team chemistry ahead of the contest outside Rome from Sept. 29-Oct. 1.

In another, Shane Lowry and Tommy Fleetwood both shot 69 alongside Sepp Straka (70).