Tiger Woods’ ex-coach hands very exciting European Ryder Cup talent ruthless reality check

Tiger Woods’ former coach has issued a damning assessment of Ludvig Aberg.

Hank Haney is not convinced that Ludvig Aberg is worth the hype surrounding him 

Tiger Woods‘ former coach Hank Haney is not convinced that Ludvig Aberg is living up to the hype in spite of his rapid rise over the last few years.

Aberg made a flying start to his career, earning a place at the Ryder Cup just months after turning professional in 2023. He chipped in with two points to help Team Europe secure a famous victory, beating Scottie Scheffler along the way.

The young Swede went on to earn his first PGA Tour victory at the RSM Classic and finished in second place at last year’s Masters, his first appearance at a major championship.

He now sits inside the world’s top 10 but Haney, who coached Woods between 2004 and 2010, is yet to be convinced that he is worth the hype.

Speaking on his podcast, Haney said: “This Ludvig Aberg, they keep pumping him up. Every couple of years, you get a guy from Europe, and they say he is the new sliced bread. This guy could be it. He could be the sliced bread.

“But the way they pump him up, let’s see him win something. I know he played good at the Masters last year and played well in some majors. He has a great golf swing.”

Haney went on to reference Aberg’s muted display at the Farmers Insurance Open, where a dreadful final round saw him finish T42 with a total score of three-over-par.

“He finished 42nd at Torrey Pines, finished 35th in strokes,” said Haney. “He finished 40-something in approach shots to the green, 20-something in greens in regulation and 56th in putting. And he is going to be the next great player?”

Haney is never shy to offer his opinions on players, with Rory McIlroy coming in for criticism after his dramatic collapse on the final day of last year’s US Open.

In the wake of his defeat to Bryson DeChambeau, Haney pointed the finger at McIlroy’s caddie Harry Diamond and suggested that he would have won if Woods’ former caddie Steve Williams was on the bag.

He later took to X (formerly Twitter) to clarify his comments, posting: “I never said he wasn’t great for Rory, I said they made a mistake on 15 at the US Open. I actually am a big fan of friend caddies, anyone can make a mistake.”

Haney’s criticism prompted a response from McIlroy, who said: “Certainly wouldn’t go to Hank Haney for advice. Someone said to me once, if you would never take advice from these people, you would never take their criticisms either.”

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