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Golf in Sweden
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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Golf in Sweden dates to 1888 when the first course was opened at Ryfors Bruk in Mullsjö.[1] The first 18 hole course was opened in Gothenburg in 1894, and Stockholm Golf Club was established along with the Swedish Golf Federation (SGF) in 1904.[1] Today it is a popular sport with over half a million active players and close to 500 courses.[2]
History
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In 1946, Prince Bertil, Duke of Halland became Chairman of the SGF. Sven Tumba was instrumental in promoting the game as an healthy activity for the masses, and in 1968 he organized exhibition matches at Lidingö Golf Club and Falsterbo Golf Club featuring Arnold Palmer, popularizing the sport further. By 1970 there were 110 courses.[1]
The first notable Swedish professional golfers emerged in the 1970s, with Gunnar Mueller the first to play all four rounds in a major at the 1973 Open Championship. Kärstin Ehrnlund joined the Ladies European Tour in its inaugural season in 1979, and secured the first Swedish victory on the tour in 1980. In 1982, Charlotte Montgomery became the first to qualify as a member on one of the main U.S.-based golf tours when she succeeded at the LPGA Final Qualifying Tournament, soon followed by Pia Nilsson, who would later captain the European 1998 Solheim Cup team.[3]
Golf boomed in the 1980s, and the number of courses almost doubled in a single decade to 271. In 1984, the Swedish Golf Tour was established, and a women's tour followed two years later. Corporate sponsorship of professionals emerged, and Team Saab supported by Saab Automobile, saw Ove Sellberg, Magnus Persson and Krister Kinell turn professionals in 1982 and be competitive on the European Tour, where the first victory came in 1986. Liselotte Neumann became the first LPGA Tour winner and major champion when she won the 1988 U.S. Women's Open.[3]
In 1997, Gabriel Hjertstedt became the first to win on the PGA Tour and two years later the first two-time winner. Jesper Parnevik became the first three-time winner, with a total of five PGA Tour-titles 1997–2001. Between 1995 and 2005 Annika Sörenstam was a dominant on the LPGA Tour, with a career record of 72 LPGA Tour titles, including 10 major victories. By the time Anna Nordqvist won her third major in 2021, she and her compatriots had the third most LPGA major championship titles of any nation, behind only the United States and South Korea. The first Swedish men's major victory came at the 2016 Open Championship through Henrik Stenson, after Parnevik, Niclas Fasth and Jonas Blixt had all recorded runner-up finishes.[4]
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Courses
As of January 2024, the number of golf clubs organized by the Swedish Golf Federation (SGF) was 445.[2][5]
Top ranked courses
Golf Digest has continually ranked Swedish courses since 1993. Svensk Golf, a monthly publication attached to the Swedish Golf Federation, in 2020 published an updated ranking using the same methodology.[6]
- Visby GC
- Bro Hof Slott GC – Stadium Course
- Kristianstad GC – Åhus Östra
- Ullna GC
- Falsterbo GC
- Halmstad GC – Norra
- Vallda G&CC
- Österåker GC – Öster by Stenson
- PGA Sweden National – Links Course
- Barsebäck G&CC – Masters Course
- Vasatorp GC – Tournament Course
- Ljunghusen GC – 1–18
- Royal Drottningholm GC
- Bro Hof Slott GC – Castle Course
- Sand GC
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Tours
The Swedish Golf Tour has operated continuously since 1984, and the Swedish Golf Tour (women) since 1986. Recently most tournaments also feature on the Nordic Golf League and LET Access Series, respectively.
Tournaments
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National championships
The Swedish Golf Federation instituted the first national golf tournament in 1904. Notable tournaments include:[1]
- Swedish Matchplay Championship (since 1904)
- Swedish International Stroke Play Championship (1945–2006)
- Swedish International (women) (1962–2007)
- Swedish PGA Championship (since 1970)
- Swedish PGA Championship (women) (since 1997)
- Swedish Junior Matchplay Championship (since 1939)
- Swedish Junior Strokeplay Championship (since 1977)
International tournaments
Professional
The Solheim Cup has been hosted twice:[7]
The European Tour:[8]
- Scandinavian Enterprise Open, played 1973–1990, rotated between Royal Drottningholm GC, Bokskogen GC, Vasatorp GC, Linköping GC and Ullna GC.
- PLM Open, played 1984–1990, mainly rotated between the links courses Falsterbo GC, Ljunghusen GC and Flommen GC.
- Scandinavian Masters, played 1991–2019, was typically hosted at Barsebäck G&CC, with stints at Kungsängen GC, Forsgården GC and Arlandastad Golf, before a new rota of Bro Hof Slott GC, PGA Sweden National and Hills GC was established in 2010.
- Scandinavian Mixed, played 2020–2024.
The Ladies European Tour:
- Scandinavian TPC hosted by Annika, played 1996–2008, was the longest running of over a dozen different LET tournaments hosted.
The Challenge Tour:
- Swedish courses hosted over a hundred Challenge Tour events 1990–2020.
Amateur
The International Golf Federation or European Golf Association:
- Sweden has hosted over 40 IGF or EGA events starting with the 1962 St Andrews Trophy at Halmstad GC.
Qualification event for the Junior Solheim Cup:
- Annika Invitational Europe (since 2012)
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Golfers
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As of October 2024, the number of active golfers organized by the Swedish Golf Federation was 506,000.[2] This makes golf the third largest sport in Sweden in terms of active members, behind association football and athletics.[9]
Swedish Golfer of the Year
Annika Sörenstam won Swedish Golfer of the Year nine times 1995–2005, and Henrik Stenson five times 2006–2016.
Swedish Golf Hall of Fame
Members include Annika Sörenstam, Liv Wollin, Henrik Stenson, Liselotte Neumann, Sven Tumba, Jesper Parnevik, Pia Nilsson, Göran Zachrisson, Helen Alfredsson and Robert Karlsson.[10]
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National Amateur Squad
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The Swedish Golf Team is the national squad. Amateur players from the age of 13 are trained and selected by the SGF to represent the country in international tournaments. The first win came at the 1959 European Amateur Team Championship. Notably, the women's team won the European Ladies' Team Championship three consecutive years 2018, 2019 and 2020, with players such as Linn Grant, Maja Stark, Frida Kinhult and Ingrid Lindblad.[11]
In 2023, Ingrid Lindblad and Ludvig Åberg briefly topped the World Amateur Golf Ranking simultaniously.
Achievements
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Notable Touring Professionals
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Updated as of 21 September 2025.
Swedish professional golfers have collectively won over a hundred European Tour titles and also over a hundred LPGA Tour titles. Notable golfers listed below are those with a win or runner-up finish on any of the principlal international tours.[a][b]
Male tour golfers
Female tour golfers
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Golfers in Multisport and Professional Team Events
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Between 2016 and 2024, ten different golfers represented Sweden at the olympics. Henrik Stenson won a medal at the 2016 Summer Olympics.
Ludvig Åberg was the 12th Ryder Cup player from Sweden, while Pia Nilsson, Catrin Nilsmark, Helen Alfredsson, Carin Koch and Annika Sörenstam have all been Solheim Cup captains.
Anders Forsbrand and Per-Ulrik Johansson won the 1991 World Cup. Liselotte Neumann and Helen Alfredsson won the 1992 Sunrise Cup World Team Championship.
Golf at the Summer Olympics
Ryder Cup and Solheim Cup
World Cup of Golf
Other international cups
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Notes
- Players with or eligible for Swedish nationality that have chosen to represent other countries (e.g. Jenny Lidback, Carl Suneson, Camilla Hedberg) are not included. Players that have switched their nationality (e.g. Caroline Westrup, Paul Nilbrink) are included if they represented Sweden at the time of their achievement. Several players, such as Annika Sörenstam, have assumed U.S. citizenship, but continued to use Sweden as sporting nationality.
- The principal tours in this centext are defined as the PGA Tour (USA), European Tour (EUR), Asian Tour (ASA), Sunshine Tour (AFR), Korn Ferry Tour (KFT), Challenge Tour (CHA) and LIV Golf League (LIV) for men, and the LPGA Tour (LPGA), Ladies European Tour (LET), LPGA of Japan Tour (JP), LPGA of Korea Tour (KR), Ladies Asian Golf Tour (AS), Epson Tour (EPS), WPGA Tour of Australasia (AU), and Sunshine Ladies Tour (AF) for women. In addition, the senior tours PGA Tour Champions (CMP) and European Senior Tour (EST) for men, and the Legends Tour (LEG) for women are included. A record of these wins is maintained by the Swedish Golf Federation.[4][3]
- Career best position in the Official World Golf Rankings.[12]
- Career best position in the Women's World Golf Rankings. Officially introduced in February 2006, hence not available for players active in prior years. Full list of all ranked players available at the official WWGR site and its archive.
- Anna Nordqvist and Sophie Gustafson won the European Nations Cup together in 2010 and 2011
References
External links
Wikiwand - on
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