About me
Hey! My name is Mats Ege, and I turned professional summer of 2024. Here are a few things you might not know about me already.
Young Mats
I was introduced to golf at a very young age — on my second birthday, to be exact — when I received my first set of clubs. It took a few years before I truly fell in love with the game, but I did love ice cream, so I was always happy to join my dad at the course as long as it ended with a treat.
Around the age of 12, ice cream was no longer necessary. I was playing plenty of local junior tournaments and starting to take the game more seriously. I don’t remember everything from that time, but one thing stands out clearly: during summer breaks, my dad would drop me off at the golf course before work and pick me up again in the evening.
Many of those days were spent searching for golf balls in bushes and creeks — and somewhere along the way, I fell in love with what I now call my work.
High school
At the age of 16, I moved away from home — the beginning of a new chapter in my life. I relocated from Kristiansand to Stavanger, about 3.5 hours away by car, to combine high school with competitive golf at Stavanger Golf Club and Wang Stavanger.
This is where I met some of my closest friends and many of the people who helped shape who I am today. They taught me discipline, work ethic, and lessons that go far beyond golf. Stavanger is still my “Norwegian base” — it’s where my coach is based and where I return whenever I need to fine-tune my game.
After three years there, I began my college journey.
College part 1
I began my college career at California State University, Northridge (CSUN), located just north of Los Angeles. It was a smooth transition in many ways, especially since one of my closest friends from Stavanger, Tomas Helgø, had already completed a year there. Although adjusting from the Norwegian school system to the American system was challenging at times, Tomas and my roommate at the time, Eirik Einmo, made the transition far easier than I had expected.
After six months, COVID hit. In short, I used that period extremely well. I improved quickly and started seeing strong results at the amateur level. That progress made the decision to enter the transfer portal much clearer. I knew I wanted to pursue professional golf — and to do that, I wanted to compete alongside the best amateurs in the world.
College part 2
After two years that included college competition, COVID interruptions, and a transfer period, I began a new chapter at East Tennessee State University (ETSU) in Johnson City — a place I now consider home.
Following several team victories and five individual wins, I like to believe I left a positive mark on the ETSU program. What I know for certain is that the program left a lasting mark on me. It shaped me into a better player and, more importantly, a better man.
After three years of being challenged and pushed every day by my teammates and coaches at ETSU, I made the decision to turn professional.
Pro life
My professional career so far has included a bit of everything — from being in contention on the final day of a DP World Tour event to missing cuts on the PGA Tour Americas.
It has meant a lot of days away from home. Some have been great, others tough. Some moments were expected, others caught me off guard. But at the end of the day, it’s a journey I truly enjoy — and one I’m fully committed to continuing.
