Last year, Ludvig Aberg burst onto the scene by finishing second in his Masters debut. He came heartbreakingly close to claiming the green jacket, and in case you didn’t realize he entered this year’s tournament as one of the favorites. He opened strong with a first-round 68, offering a glimpse of promise. But as the pressure mounted at Augusta, he faltered in the final round. Days after that, he recently shared a shocking update about the stress he felt.

Ahead of the first round of the RBC Heritage, Aberg opened up about the stress he felt at the Masters. “It takes a lot out of you, and Monday morning I almost felt a little hungover, even though I didn’t have a sip of alcohol,” he said. The golfer also went on to add about how draining the Augusta National is compared to Harbour Town Golf Links. He said, “It’s a cool place to come to. It’s a very different vibe here compared to last week. But obviously it’s a massive event, and we’re really excited to get going on Thursday.” After this, the interviewer curiously asked the golfer why he didn’t have alcohol if he was feeling burned out. To this, he simply said, “Probably should have”. His one of his major regrets.

On paper, Ludvig Aberg’s seventh-place finish seems impressive this year, but it could’ve been even better. On Sunday, it was proved anything can happen on the back nine at Augusta National. Aberg was sitting at 10-under through 70 holes and still in great shape. But things unraveled late: he bogeyed the 17th and then closed with a triple-bogey on 18. As a result, he ended the tournament at six under, finishing in seventh place.

Had Ludvig Aberg played his final two holes at even par, he would have finished the tournament in solo third place, just one shot shy of making the playoff. Unfortunately, that didn’t happen. Surprisingly, the golfer wasn’t actually aware of what to expect at Augusta National.

Ludvig Aberg had a “storm going on” inside

Playing among veterans like Scottie Scheffler, Rory McIlroy, and more, only the 25-year-old knows the kind of pressure he felt. On the eve of the tournament at a dinner with Mercedes-Benz, he talked about it and said, “I didn’t really know what to expect.” However, he later resorted to alcohol to calm himself down. Aberg further added, “I didn’t really know what it was going to be like before I put the peg down on the first tee and really felt it— and I really did!” Not only that, the golfer also talked about how he might look calm and composed on the greens, but that’s definitely not the case all the time.

“It might look like I might be cool, calm, and collected on the outside, but inside, there’s a storm going on at all times.” Despite the struggles, the 25-year-old embraces everything coming his way. “We do try to embrace it and be okay with everything that comes with it. It’s going to be a lot. It’s going to be very overwhelming at times—and I think the acceptance of that is very important,” as revealed on Town and Country Magazine. Thanks to his attitude towards accepting things, Aberg managed to finish top 10 in his second Masters.

What do you think about Ludvig Aberg’s performance at the Masters? Feel free to share your thoughts in the comments below!