LINDBERG: I just finished up my second professional year on the Swedish golf tour, which is a part of the Nordic Golf League. That means I play most of my tournaments in Sweden, but also have a few in the neighboring countries like Norway, Denmark and Finland.   

I had some of my top moments so far in my professional career during the second half of the 2019 season. Finishing the year with a fifth place in the last regular season tournament followed by winning the final qualifying stage for this year’s season.  

This year unfortunately has had very little success in tournaments, but I’m determined to make 2021 much better. 

de POYEN: I turned professional right after graduating from UMSL in December 2017 and am currently playing on the Pro Golf Tour (3rd division of the European Tour) a circuit where most of our tournaments are played in Egypt, Morocco, Germany, Austria, Czech Republic, Poland and Holland.

Only the top five players in the Order of Merit at the end of each year gets promoted to the 2nd division. I have been close the past two years, finishing ninth overall in my very first season as a professional in 2018, with a win at the “Casa Green Golf Open” in February 2018 followed by two top three finishess that season.

2019 hasn’t been a great year as I finished 20th in the Order of Merit. I was struggling with my game all year long and I wasn’t consistent enough.

The 2020 season started off good with a second place and a fourth place finish at the first two events of the year in Egypt. Our schedule was then impacted because of Covid-19 and a lot of tournaments got cancelled and there are still a lot of uncertainties in terms of tournament golf for next year. 

LINDBERG: Playing golf has always been something I love to do, but seeking a professional career has not always been on my mind. I think that grew into me. I have always loved to compete and improve without really having any major goals, but going to college in America was a decision that made me fully committed to pursuing a career in golf.  

So far it's been a lot of hard work and I’m still chasing the dream of playing on the big stage. But to be able to spend my time playing golf every day is something I am really grateful for.  

de POYEN: Playing golf professionally has always been a dream since I was a little kid. Being able to wake up in the morning to go practice, go to tournaments and to do something you truly love doing is really a blessing. Even though a professional golfer spends most of his time away from home, at airports, in planes, hotels, and golf courses, I am really passionate about what I do. 

LINDBERG: Collegiate golf was comfortable in the way that you were traveling with the team and a coach who had everything planned for every event, so you pretty much only had to focus on your golf game. Now playing professionally, you have to be your own coach and plan everything yourself which requires a lot more responsibility and structure.  

 The competition is harder as well. There are a lot of really good players, even on the lower tours I currently play at. It requires your game to develop a couple more levels to be successful.  

de POYEN: The biggest difference to me has been in planning for trips. Being a college golfer is pretty easy when you know that your coach handles all the logistic that comes before playing an event, booking flights, hotels, rental cars, practice rounds, etc. You don’t realize how much work it is until you actually get to do it yourself with a certain budget.

LINDBERG: It has helped me in many ways. Playing tournaments and traveling a lot built routine and experience that I can carry with me when playing on my own. Everything from how to analyze a golf course strategically and prepare in the best way possible, to being put in uncomfortable and pressure filled situations. All these experiences matter a lot and my years at UMSL have really helped me develop as a golfer and person.  

de POYEN: The competitive schedule at UMSL really helped me to prepare for my professional career. We were playing on average 12 to 14 events per year, traveling from state to state, which is pretty similar to what I am currently doing. College golf, to me, is the best way to prepare for a golf professional career.   

LINDBERG: There are so many great memories from my four years at UMSL, but I will have to say my freshman year in 2015 when we won our first conference championship. That was a huge moment not only for us involved but for the program as well. I feel like that kick started a positive wave of confidence we could carry with us through the rest of the season and through following years. 

de POYEN: I have had so many good memories at UMSL from 2013 to 2017, but my best one has to be our win at the 2015 GLVC Championship at Prairie View. Our team was composed of Matt Barry, Colby Yates, Anthony Cope, Markus Lindberg and myself. We played in really tough conditions all week with rain, wind and cold, but we managed to push through and play some solid golf as a team to get the win and our first conference ring.