Alexander Björk
| Alexander Björk | |
|---|---|
 Björk at the 2022 Volvo Car Scandinavian Mixed | |
| Personal information | |
| Full name | Alexander Karl Mikael Björk |
| Born | 7 June 1990 Växjö, Sweden |
| Height | 1.85 m (6 ft 1 in) |
| Weight | 76 kg (168 lb; 12.0 st) |
| Sporting nationality |  Sweden |
| Residence | Jönköping, Sweden |
| Career | |
| Turned professional | 2009 |
| Current tour(s) | PGA Tour European Tour |
| Former tour(s) | Challenge Tour Nordic Golf League Swedish Golf Tour |
| Professional wins | 5 |
| Highest ranking | 59 (30 December 2018)[1] (as of 27 October 2024) |
| Number of wins by tour | |
| European Tour | 1 |
| Asian Tour | 1 |
| Challenge Tour | 1 |
| Other | 3 |
| Best results in major championships | |
| Masters Tournament | DNP |
| PGA Championship | T39: 2024 |
| U.S. Open | DNP |
| The Open Championship | T41: 2023 |
Alexander Karl Mikael Björk (born 7 June 1990) is a Swedish professional golfer who plays on the European Tour and PGA Tour. He won the 2018 Volvo China Open, and has recorded runner-up finishes at the UBS Hong Kong Open, British Masters, DP World Tour Championship, Ras Al Khaimah Championship and Omega European Masters. In 2023, he finished 5th in Race to Dubai Eligibility Ranking to receive a PGA Tour card.[2]
Professional career
[edit]Björk turned professional as a teenager in 2009 and joined the Swedish Golf Tour, where he won his first event as a professional, the Swedish PGA Championship, in his rookie season.
In 2012, Björk became the first golfer to list himself through Trade in Sports, an exchange for athletes, funding the launch of his professional career by pledging 10% of winnings to investors.[3]
Challenge Tour
[edit]In 2013, he won the Arlandastad MoreGolf Open and finished 6th in the Nordic Golf League rankings to earn promotion to the Challenge Tour. His international break-through season came in 2016, where he won the Le Vaudreuil Golf Challenge in France and secured a card for the European Tour through a seventh place on the 2016 Challenge tour rankings.[4] The season saw eight top-ten finishes including a tie for second at the Terre dei Consoli Open in Italy. He reached a rank of 181 on the Official World Golf Ranking.[5]
European Tour
[edit]On the 2017 European Tour, Björk shared the lead with Peter Uihlein heading into the final round of Open de France, an Open Qualifying Series and Rolex Series event with a purse of US$7 million. He eventually finished tied for third,[6] which earned him a spot at the 2017 Open Championship and saw him rise to 116 on the OWGR.[7]
In the opening tournament of the 2018 European Tour, Björk shared the lead heading into the final round of UBS Hong Kong Open, but shot his second in the bunker on the final hole and missed a short putt for par and a playoff, finishing tied for second.[8] In April 2018, the week after he finished third at Trophée Hassan II, Björk won his first European Tour title at the Volvo China Open in Beijing, moving into the top ten of the 2018 Race to Dubai rankings[9] and a world ranking of 73.[7] In October he was runner-up at the Sky Sports British Masters. He finished the season 19th in the Race to Dubai and with a career-high world rank of 59.[7]
Björk made less of an impact in 2019 and 2020, but comfortably kept his card. He was tied for third at the Hero Open in England in August 2020, his best finish since 2018.
In 2021, Björk finished tied second with Matt Fitzpatrick at the DP World Tour Championship, Dubai, two shots behind winner Collin Morikawa, and advanced to 12th on the final 2021 Race to Dubai ranking.
During 2022, Björk surpassed €5 million in career earnings, but struggled with a back injury and missed the latter part of the season.[10] After three months of rehab, he returned to tour for the 2023 UAE swing, where he finished joint runner-up at the Ras Al Khaimah Championship, one stroke behind Daniel Gavins, missing out on a playoff after a bogey on the final hole.[11]
In September 2023, Björk was solo runner-up at the Omega European Masters, two strokes behind compatriot Ludvig Åberg who birdied four of the closing five holes to record his first win as a professional.[12] He finished the season 11th in the Race to Dubai and 5th in PGA Tour Eligibility Ranking to receive a 2024 PGA Tour card.[13] In his first PGA Tour start, at The American Express, he shot an opening round of 64 to sit 2 strokes off the lead.
Professional wins (5)
[edit]European Tour wins (1)
[edit]| No. | Date | Tournament | Winning score | Margin of victory | Runner-up |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 29 Apr 2018 | Volvo China Open1 | −18 (66-72-67-65=270) | 1 stroke |  Adrián Otaegui |
1Co-sanctioned by the Asian Tour
Challenge Tour wins (1)
[edit]| No. | Date | Tournament | Winning score | Margin of victory | Runners-up |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 24 Jul 2016 | Le Vaudreuil Golf Challenge | −14 (67-65-69-69=270) | 1 stroke |  Nick Cullen,  Aaron Rai |
Nordic Golf League wins (2)
[edit]| No. | Date | Tournament | Winning score | Margin of victory | Runner-up |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 26 Sep 2009 | PGA of Sweden National Open | −7 (74-65-70=209) | 1 stroke | Joakim Renström |
| 2 | 13 Sep 2013 | Arlandastad MoreGolf Open | −12 (67-62-69=198) | 3 strokes | Gustav Kocken |
Other wins (1)
[edit]- 2015 Abbekås Open (Swedish Mini tour Future Series)
Results in major championships
[edit]Results not in chronological order in 2020.
| Tournament | 2017 | 2018 |
|---|---|---|
| Masters Tournament | ||
| U.S. Open | ||
| The Open Championship | CUT | CUT |
| PGA Championship | CUT |
| Tournament | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Masters Tournament | ||||||
| PGA Championship | CUT | T39 | ||||
| U.S. Open | ||||||
| The Open Championship | CUT | NT | CUT | T41 | CUT |
CUT = missed the half-way cut
"T" = tied
NT = No tournament due to the COVID-19 pandemic
Results in World Golf Championships
[edit]| Tournament | 2018 | 2019 |
|---|---|---|
| Championship | T39 | |
| Match Play | ||
| Invitational | T48 | |
| Champions | T28 |
"T" = tied
Team appearances
[edit]Professional
See also
[edit]References
[edit]- ^ "Week 52 2018 Ending 30 Dec 2018" (pdf). OWGR. Retrieved 22 October 2019.
- ^ "Player profile Alexander Björk". PGA European Tour. Retrieved 5 February 2023.
- ^ "Alexander Björk" (in Swedish). Trade In Sports. Retrieved 25 July 2016.
- ^ "Bjork inspired by Stenson as he wins Le Vaudreuil". PGA European Tour. 24 July 2016. Retrieved 25 July 2016.
- ^ "Alexander Björk". OWGR. Archived from the original on 28 December 2018. Retrieved 21 November 2016.
- ^ "2017 HNA Open de France". PGA European Tour. Retrieved 8 September 2017.
- ^ a b c "Alexander Björk". Official World Golf Ranking. Archived from the original on 28 December 2018. Retrieved 8 September 2017.
- ^ "UBS Hong Kong Open Day Four". European Tour. Retrieved 26 November 2017.
- ^ "Brilliant Björk Wins Maiden Title in Beijing". European Tour. Retrieved 29 April 2018.
- ^ Strömberg, Martin (4 February 2023). "Björk i slagläge inför slutronden: Efter skadeproblemen – på väg mot bästa tävlingen på över ett år" (in Swedish). Svensk Golf. Retrieved 5 February 2023.
- ^ "Daniel Gavins secures dramatic Ras Al Khaimah Championship victory". European Tour. Retrieved 5 February 2023.
- ^ "Ludvig Aberg boosts Ryder Cup hopes with impressive DP World Tour win at European Masters". Sky Sports. Retrieved 3 September 2023.
- ^ "Race to Dubai Rankings - PGA Tour Eligibility". PGA Tour. Retrieved 19 January 2024.
External links
[edit]- Official website
- Alexander Björk at the European Tour official site
- Alexander Björk at the PGA Tour official site
- Alexander Björk at the Official World Golf Ranking official site