Hovland took the biggest victory of his career

The victory is the biggest for a Norwegian men’s golfer ever.

– I do not feel I am very good in situations under pressure. I was shaking towards the end. I thought I lost it after the second shot on hole 16, but made a fantastic pair there. I missed the putt on hole 17 and knew I had to make a birdie on hole 18. Luckily it went in. I do not feel comfortable in those situations at all, says Hovland in an interview broadcast on Eurosport and GOLFTV.

– I played very solid all day. The start was obviously very good. In the last nine, I did not get as close with the input and failed to lower the five-meter putts I got. The bogey on hole 12 set me back a bit. I knew I was still in a good position if I could get in some birdies on the last holes. It’s a lot up and down, but my golf was very stable, so it could have been a lot more stressful, he says after putting the decisive putt:

Former golf professionals Per Haugsrud and Henrik Bjørnstad – who was the first Norwegian on the PGA Tour – commented on the final round for Eurosport. Bjørnstad is deeply impressed with Hovland’s achievements.

– I think it was difficult enough to manage the cut over there. Winning is beyond my comprehension. He has won twice during the same calendar year. He is a completely unique type, and combines a good head with great golf. Not very many of them come, at least not from Norway, Bjørnstad says to VG.

Hovland took command early in the final round in Mexico. Half-played, he had climbed up from third place to first place, and had two strokes down to the nearest challengers.

Hovland had then made four birdies during his first nine holes, but on hole 12 came the first bogey of the round after a weak chip. Hovland hit back and was close to an eagle on the hole after, but had to “settle” with a birdie. Still, he lost control of the lead after three quick birdies sent Aaron Wise into the lead, but Hovland responded again with a new birdie on hole 14.

The two were thus in a split lead, 19 strokes under par, as there were four holes left for Hovland and three holes for Wise.

Wise had several good birdie opportunities on the last holes, but failed to improve his score. Hovland also missed a couple of good birdie opportunities, but went out on the 18th and last hole in a shared lead with a finished Wise.

Thus, he needed a birdie on hole 18 to secure the victory – the same situation Hovland was in when he won in Puerto Rico earlier this year – and Hovland got a very good opportunity.

Birdieputten from around five meters sat Hovland and thus he won the tournament.

For the victory, Hovland received 1,296,000 US dollars, equivalent to 11.42 million Norwegian kroner. He also takes a leap on the world rankings, where he will now be ranked number 15 in the world. He also jumps up to a third place in the FedEx Cup, with only this year’s Masters winner Dustin Johnson and this year’s US Open winner Bryson DeChambeau ahead of him.

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Hovland became the first Norwegian to win a tournament on the PGA Tour when he won the Puerto Rico Open in February.

The tournament in Mexico is far larger than the tournament in Puerto Rico, with more prize money, more ranking points and a far better starting field.

Among Hovland’s competitors this week was world number three Justin Thomas, who played with Hovland for the first two days.

Hovland has been at the top of the tournament since the start on Thursday. The Norwegian opened with a 67-round, four strokes under par, and led the tournament halfway through the second round. A bad finish, however, led to a round of 69 strokes, two strokes under par, and that the Norwegian was in a split eighth place after two of four rounds.

The golf season can be watched on Eurosport, Dplay and GOLFTV.

On Saturday, he hit back with a touchdown of his lowest round on the PGA Tour ever. With nine birdies and only one bogey, it was a round of 63 strokes – which sent Hovland up to a third place.

The Norwegian has delivered in a stable very good since the start this summer, and has now managed the cut in 17 tournaments in a row. Only two others have a longer ongoing row at the moment. Hovland’s games have also lifted him high on the world rankings. Before this week’s tournament, he was ranked number 26 in the world, making him the highest ranked male golfer from the Nordic countries. He is now jumping up to a 15th place in the world rankings.