Things came down to the wire at the Porsche Singapore Classic as Jesper Svensson and Kiradech Aphibarnrat entered the playoffs for the victory. Eventually, the Swedish rookie carded a par putt in the third playoff hole and defeated Aphibarnrat to clinch his maiden victory on the DP World Tour. Although Svensson was five strokes behind when he started the final round, his eight birdies and two eagles made him finish 9 under 63 to tie the Laguna National Golf Resort Club record and enter the contention.

From a collegiate golfer to his first win on the European Tour has been an uphill journey for Jesper Svensson. How did he come to be a golfer?

Jesper Svensson’s early life and career

Jesper Svensson was born in Uppsala, Sweden on March 14th, 1996. And from the early stages of his life, the 28-year-old showed immense interest in golf. Before moving to America, Svensson was ranked the 12th best amateur player in Sweden and had won four times (2014 – Swedish National Junior Matchplay Championship, Skandia Tour Riks, and Titleist Footjoy Junior Open, 2015 – Skandia Tour Elite event) while he was studying at Sweden’s National School of Golf.

After making a name for himself in Sweden, he got admitted to Campbell University and for four years played for the Go Camels. During his years at university, Svensson won four intercollegiate events. Three of these victories were in his senior years; Golfweek Program Challenge, OBX Intercollegiate, and Big South Conference. He won his first title at the Big South Championship Individual title when he was a sophomore.

After four years and collecting four remarkable accolades, Svensson graduated with a degree in Business Administration in 2019. Soon after, the then-amateur joined the Nordic Challenge Tour to start his professional journey. In his first year on the Tour, Svensson won the Race to HimmerLand, simultaneously, Svensson was also playing on the Challenge Tour. There, in 2021, he earned his second career win in 2023 at the BLN Challenge Trophy and received the 2024 membership for the DP World Tour.

In his last nine starts on the DP World Tour, Svensson finished runner-up two times, first at the Investec South Africa Open and then in January at the Bahrain Championship. But at the Porsche Singapore Classic, the 28-year-old did not want the results to be the same.

Jesper Svensson gets candid about his maiden win

After winning the Porsche Singapore Classic, Jesper Svensson was a bit emotional as he looked back at his journey to lifting a trophy on the European Tour. “It’s been a long journey. To win on my first season out here, I couldn’t have dreamt of it. It’s always been a dream to be a winner on the DP World Tour and to achieve it feels amazing,” said Svensson in the post-match interview.

Remembering the times at the Challenge Tour when he missed the title, Svensson recalled, “Combined with Challenge Tour last year and the beginning of this season I’ve had five second-place spots in the last year. I really wanted to come out on top here.” Svensson further explained what went through his mind right before he made an eagle on par-5 14th.

He described, “I told Lucky, my caddie… on 14 we were thinking about laying up.” However, they quickly doubled down on that though and said, “‘No, we’re not finishing second again.” Ultimately, “it was the best shot of the week,” he admitted.

Now after carding his first victory in his rookie year on the European Tour, Jesper Svensson will be taking home $425,000 as the winner of the Porsche Singapore Classic with shining silverware!

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