2026 RBC Heritage leaderboard: Ludvig Aberg grabs early lead after Round 1

Country life looked better on Ludvig Åberg on Thursday at the 2026 RBC Heritage as the Swedish superstar strolled around Harbor Town Golf Links stress-free. With eight birdies and 10 pars, Åberg signed for an opening 63 to open a one-shot lead over Viktor Hovland and Harris English at 8 under.

“It was obviously a very good day in terms of goals,” Åberg said. “Any time you don’t have a bogey and you make eight birdies, it’s a good day. I felt like the highlight for me was definitely my irons and my approach game. I felt like it was really positive. I felt like I was making the flights that I was trying to make. I was on the right side of the flags, those kinds of things I really like to see. Then a few putts were made on the back nine which I haven’t really done before.”

The 26-year-old attributed the positive start to his approach game (he placed third in the field Thursday), but the round wouldn’t have been complete without his putter. His first five birdie bids all came from 10 feet, while his last three came from 24, 15 and 17 feet, respectively.

Åberg connected from long distance on three of his final five holes to overtake Hovland and English who were among the first to finish on Thursday. For the robotic right-hander, this departure represents a new chance to participate in the weekend competition, which he has become accustomed to in recent weeks on the PGA Tour, even if a trophy in 2026 has not yet fallen into his hands.

“I think obviously after my outing last week I felt like I was playing well but I made some stupid mistakes that stopped me from having a real chance,” Åberg said. “But I also felt like overall I was swinging it well, moving it well, so I didn’t have to prepare a lot in terms of my golf swing Monday through Wednesday, and I felt like some good golf was there.”

Michael Brennan was one of 10 players to earn his place in this field with a victory in 2025. As RBC Heritage hosted players qualifying for The Sentry (which never happened), the 24-year-old took full advantage of the opportunity from the start with an excellent 65.

Former tournament winner Matt Fitzpatrick matched that figure late on with birdies on three of his final four holes and just 20 official putts alongside the world No. 1. Scottie Scheffler didn’t do as well as his playing partner, but the 2024 champion still managed to sign for a 68 even after losing his opening tee shot of the tournament out of bounds.

The leader

1. Ludvig Aberg (-8): Another week and another appearance of Åberg’s name on the first page of the rankings. After a tough performance at the Masters, Åberg picked up where he left off in PGA Tour competition. He arrived in Hilton Head having had great chances to win in his last three non-major starts – Arnold Palmer Invitational, The Players Championship and Texas Open.

Although it was a flawless performance, Åberg still made a handful of big misses off the tee. He managed to escape trouble today, but if he wants to escape this week with a trophy, he’ll need to tighten things up in that department since he connected on just seven of 14 fairways.

Other contenders

T2. Viktor Hovland, Harris English (-7)
T4. Matt Fitzpatrick, Michael Brennan, Gary Woodland, Ryan Fox, Rickie Fowler, Andrew Novak (-6)
T10. Robert MacIntyre, Sungjae Im, Sepp Straka, Daniel Berger, Si Woo Kim (-5)

You can see the gears turning and the pieces coming together in Hovland’s game. The Norwegian has become the ultimate tinkerer of late, but positive signs began to materialize at the Arnold Palmer Invitational and he has stuck to his guns ever since.

The iron play was fantastic in the first round as he ranked second in greens in regulation and near the top of the pack in approach shots gained while the putter was more than cooperative. Hovland’s strong point over the past two seasons has been his struggles off the tee, but even he admitted he only hit the driver on about four holes Thursday, allowing the rest of his game to shine.

“A few weeks ago, like before the Masters. I saw a lot of good things,” Hovland said. “I wouldn’t say I’m exactly where I want to be yet, but I’m just seeing progress and less and less big hiccups that I’m struggling with. It’s kind of been slow and steady progress since then.”

Gary continues

Another week and another Gary Woodland sighting on the front page of the leaderboard. Playing well the first few days at Augusta National before returning this weekend, the 2019 US Open champion was sensational once again on Thursday with a first-round 65. Woodland’s performance was complete, but it was his short game that kept his side’s momentum going through the middle of his round.

“I think my game is more complete than it’s ever been, which is good,” Woodland said. “I’m not fighting the game of golf, I’m fighting my head. But I’m very confident where the game is. I’m comfortable hitting multiple shots, again, which is good. I feel very comfortable with the putter, which makes everything a little easier. I’m very happy with where everything is.”

Koepka stays away

Early Thursday morning in Harbor Town, all attention was on a missing player on the field. Brooks Koepka was listed as the first alternate and waited every tee time before officially abandoning his hopes of competing in his first showpiece event of the season.

Some pointed to Collin Morikawa and the two-time major champion’s recent back injury and struggles to qualify for the Masters as a likely candidate to withdraw, but Morikawa followed. While he ranked near the bottom of the field in terms of driving distance, Morikawa posted a flawless round of 4 under and looked ready to take another tournament into consideration.

“I’m not in pain. I know it looks painful, but I’m just really scared, and I’ve never been so scared in my life to go out and play,” Morikawa said. “But I think it’s because it happened on the golf course. I’ve never had any back problems on the golf course. Every time I’m at the gym. Then I would go out and swing, I just say, do I feel good enough to swing.

“I was just so timid and timid in a way because the preparation was going well, there was a slight setback, and then at the end of the day it was like I have to go for it at the Masters. There was a point where it was like, okay, let’s stop pushing to see how far we can go and see what I can work with. I’ve had back problems for the last three years. We’ve seen it. I just have to find out. a way to protect him a little more.

As for Koepka, he now turns his attention to next week’s Zurich Classic, where he will be paired with Srixon colleague Shane Lowry. A strong start from them could be enough to push Koepka’s name into the field for the next two marquee events before the PGA Championship.

Updated Odds and Picks for RBC Heritage 2026

Odds via DraftKings Sportsbook

• Ludvig Aberg: 4-1
• Matt Fitzpatrick: 13/2
• Scottie Scheffler: 7-1
• Viktor Hovland: 8-1
• English Harris: 12-1
• Si Woo Kim: 18-1
• Robert MacIntyre: 18-1
• Rickie Fowler: 20-1

I still like Hovland after his first-round 64, but it’s hard not to watch what Fitzpatrick accomplished on Thursday without his best performance. A player who has performed well at Harbor Town year after year, Championship winner Valspar looks destined to compete this weekend. If his price is too short for you this early in the tournament, (1) I understand and (2) maybe look to Daniel Berger at 40-1 after a 5-under round.