Profile / Editor / 02 May 2007 / Leave a Comment

No Swede has ever won a major but the odds on Henrik Stenson becoming the first will be pretty slim if he continues his current rate of progress.

Stenson has taken the golfing world by storm over the last two years, enjoying a meteoric rise to become one of the most feared and respected players across the globe.

The 31-year-old has had his troubles since making his initial breakthrough in 2001, when he won the Benson and Hedges International, but hard work with coach Pete Cowen has paid rich dividends over the last two seasons.

Three second places and four third-placed finishes gave Stenson a year to remember in 2005 and he surpassed that last year, winning both the Qatar Masters and BMW International titles, and then sinking the putt to win the 2006 Ryder Cup for Europe.

But 2007 has been his best year yet, as he has cemented his worldwide reputation, and he now has the added advantage of having Fanny Suneson, Nick Faldo's former caddie, helping him around the course.

Victory over a field including Tiger Woods and Ernie Els at the Dubai Desert Classic was superb, but he then bettered that by beating the likes of Nick O'Hern, Trevor Immelman and Geoff Ogilvy to win the WGC Accenture Match Play Championship.

That win lifted him up to fifth place in the rankings and elevated him to the top of the European Order of Merit for the first time, a position he still occupies by more than 400,000 euros and is favourite at 1.95 to occupy at the end of the year.

Stenson returns to action for the first time since the US Masters this week when he makes his debut at the Wachovia Championship, where he is trading at 48 to win his second PGA title, 9.6 to place in the first five and 6.2 to finish as the top European.

Any tournament is within Stenson's reach with his length off the tee and ability on the greens - he averages more than 300 yards per drive this season - and he has felt the benefit of hard work over the winter in other parts of his game.

The Swede, who has only played seven tournaments so far this campaign, ranks second in greens in regulations hit in 2007 on the European Tour, while he also ranks in the top ten for sand saves - getting up and down three out of four times from bunkers.

Stenson's best finish to date in a major is 14th at the 2006 US PGA Championship but there was no disgrace in his 17th place finish at the US Masters last month and he did briefly hold the lead in the second round before conditions got the better of him.

He has proved he has the temperament and ability to beat the world's best with his displays in Dubai and at the Accenture and it would be a big surprise if he doesn't win at least once again this year.