PHOENIX (VG) Viktor Hovland was unable to complete the 1st round of the Waste Management Phoenix Open on Thursday due to frost (!) on the ground in the Arizona desert.
When the horns sounded one minute after sunset at 18:07 local time, Viktor Hovland had just hit a beautiful tee shot on the 12th hole at the TCP Scottsdale course in Arizona.
“You can finish the hole,” said one of the range guards.
But the Norwegian put two pegs as markers in the green, and thanked him. It might not be so strange.
The birdie opportunity on the 12th hole was the 25-year-old’s fourth in a row. On all the previous three he missed “easy” putts. The bogey on hole 11 in particular made the crowd gasp – he missed the hole on a putt that was less than 1 meter.
Therefore, it was 1 stroke under par on the first 11 holes on Thursday. Hovland, Kim and Scheffler were actually supposed to start at 12.55 local time, but frost on the ground – amazingly enough in the Arizona desert – meant that all the flights were postponed for two hours. Thus, Hovland & co never managed. to complete his round before it gets dark.
The Norwegian escaped from the media before anyone could ask a single question – and considering that the start time tomorrow is 07.45 (15.45 Norwegian time), it is probably good to prioritize rest. In any case, he has a good chance of a flying start on Friday with a putt of approximately 1.5 meters for birdie.
