Remember 2023, when World No. 5 Ludvig Åberg clinched his first PGA Tour win at the 2023 RSM Classic? He just did not take home the trophy. In fact, he even etched his name in the history of the PGA Tour. Åberg tied the lowest 72-hole total in PGA Tour history and set the record for the lowest score over the final two rounds. Now that’s what an impressive debut looks like. Now, with the 2024 RSM Classic just around the corner, the big question looms: will last year’s champion be back to defend his title? Before we get to that, let’s take a moment to reflect on his season so far.

The last time we saw Åberg teeing it up was back in August at the Tour Championship, where he finished 16th. Fast forward to September, and Golf Channel reported that Åberg would undergo arthroscopic surgery to repair a torn meniscus in his left knee. The plan was for him to start hitting balls three to four weeks after surgery and to return to the PGA Tour in 2024 on a limited schedule. Given the time he’s had to recover, does that mean he’s ready to compete again? Yes! Åberg confirmed his return by posting a video of his swing on social media with the caption, “Reeeeally looking forward to @thersmclassic next week.” The RSM Classic also assured fans of his participation in a recent press release, per PGA Tour’s official website.

With the tournament set to run from Nov. 21-24 at St. Simons Island, Georgia, the stage is set for Åberg’s comeback. Can he bring his A-game and pick up where he left off last year? After surgery and months of recovery, the pressure’s on—but if anyone thrives under it is him.

What happened to Åberg?

As mentioned earlier, Åberg’s brief hiatus from the course was due to knee surgery. The issue first came to light in the spring when he wore a knee brace at the PGA Championship in May. This came after withdrawing from the Wells Fargo Championship the week prior as a precaution. Interestingly, he didn’t bring up any knee concerns during his pre-tournament press conference at the TOUR Championship, and he went on to play a full schedule, even finishing as runner-up at the BMW Championship.

When he finally addressed it, Åberg shared, “The surgery on my torn medial meniscus went well last week, couple weeks of rehab and rest ahead. Looking forward to be playing soon.”

Injury aside, Åberg handled his first full PGA TOUR season well in fact it was nothing short of impressive. He earned eight top-10 finishes in 19 starts, including three runner-up showings, and ended the season 16th in the FedExCup standings after the TOUR Championship at East Lake.

There was some hope he’d return for the last two events of the DP World Tour season, but he missed those, including the chance to defend his DP World Tour win. Now, though, he’s ready to make his comeback at The RSM Classic, it feels like the timing is just right.