On “Contradictory” PGA Tour leadership, relocating to Florida, and his deep debt to Charles Howell III, Viktor Hovland shares his thoughts.
With his increasing prominence in the game, Ryder Cup player Viktor Hovland has never shied away from speaking his mind.
In the midst of several speculations about LIV Golf, the Norwegian has stayed true to the PGA Tour, but he hasn’t been making his home circuit look easy lately.
When Jon Rahm left for LIV Golf in December, he claimed he “totally understands” and that the PGA Tour had done “such a bad job.” Then, last week, he described the status of golf as “sad” as well as “comical.”
Hovland, who moved from Oklahoma to Florida and changed swing instructors in 2023, enjoyed the best season of his career in 2023, winning two FedEx Cup events and the PGA Tour. However, he has only achieved one top-20 this year.
He sets the stage this week at TPC Sawgrass for the Players Championship, where he made a lot of interesting remarks during the pre-tournament press conference.
A SPEAKER ON THE PGA TOUR
Jay Monahan during his pre-Players Championship news conference
Recently, Hovland has voiced criticism of the PGA Tour’s leadership, saying that Monahan need to “take ownership” of his errors.
“The thing is that I work as a professional golfer. “I can’t just say, okay, this is what exactly needs to be done or should have been done,” he added. “I don’t know exactly what should have been done because, at the end of the day, I don’t have all the information.”
However, at the same time, several statements made have since been refuted, while other statements have been incredibly contradictory. In my opinion as a leader of an organization, rather than just brushing things under the rug as I believed has been done to some extent, someone like that should accept some responsibility and say, “Hey, we made a couple of mistakes, but this is how we’re going to rectify it.”
I therefore don’t mind when people make mistakes. Everybody makes errors. However, I believe that you have to own up to your mistakes and explain that you’re trying to improve and this is how you’re going to accomplish it.
IDENTITY OCCASIONS AND FIELD SIZES
The TPC Sawgrass 17th hole
Unlike some of the new high-profile Signature Events, this week’s Players Championship features a 36-hole cut and a 144-man field.
The PGA Tour’s future remains uncertain in light of the recent SSG agreement and ongoing behind-the-scenes negotiations with LIV’s funders, the Saudi Arabian Public Investment Fund.
The tour’s schedule has seen significant modifications due to the changing terrain, one of which being the contentious addition of the Signature Events, which have larger prize money and smaller fields.
For instance, the players competing in the tournaments have benefited greatly from these Signature Events. I’m not sure if that’s what the fans would prefer to see,” he remarked.
“I’m not sure if that will result in a superior product in the long run. I have not given it much attention because I have heard both sides of the argument.
“Yes, I have read Lucas Glover’s remarks from last week, in which he stated that the smaller fields do not increase competition. Sure, you’re getting the best players to play, the best guys to turn up, but larger fields make the fields more competitive. I believe that to be a simple truth. We’re playing The Players Championship with 144 guys for a purpose.
“However, I have no idea what the viewers really want to watch in the end. Which would they prefer to watch, the larger sizes or these constrained field sizes? Actually, I’m not sure.
“Well, I’m not sure what direction we’re going in. A lot of that, in my opinion, depends on what happens to the LIV players and whether they return in the end. If we remain split for ten, fifteen, or however long it takes, I don’t think that’s a good future.
“There has to be some kind of decision being made in the future.”
CHARLES HOWELL III
After making a putt, Charles Howell III gives the audience a salute.
Hovland talked about how Charles Howell III, another OSU alum, supported him during his early touring years. “A lot,” he remarked, he owes Charles Howell III.
“I recall my first year on the Tour.” Charles Howell and his family, who have ties to Oklahoma State, are wonderful folks, and I traveled with them quite a bit. Despite the fact that he like to play a little earlier than I do, we played a number of practice rounds together.
“After taking me under his wing, I asked him a lot of questions, and he provided me with honest responses. Being out here for so long makes it obvious that it’s not about technical things or anything like that; rather, it’s more about the little things, like how you treat yourself and your business, and simply having the belief that you’re good enough to perform out there.
“It’s not so much about the advice as it is about surrounding yourself with knowledgeable individuals who value your presence and have expertise. That just seems to soothe you the most, in my opinion.
“So I owe a lot to Charles Howell and his family.”
A PERMANENT OUTSIDE
Even though he may not agree with everything that has occurred with the PGA Tour, he claims he has faith in the PAC to speak for players’ interests and is not interested in wasting his time in meetings.
“I could have definitely gone out of my way to put more time and effort into figuring out what kind of trajectory we’re on and put myself into that debate a bit more,” Hovland stated.
“However, I do believe that the players on the PAC will represent the players in the greatest light, and I have been in contact with a few of those men to get more information.
However, I’m also not all that interested in wasting my leisure time attempting to understand every little detail of the circumstance. I’m attempting to play my game outside for a little while because, well, I trust the people on the board to sort of go with the flow.”
SSG GRANT
The Tour Championship goes to Viktor Hovland.
The Norwegian was questioned over the new agreement between the PGA Tour and Strategic Sports Group, which calls for players to receive $1.5 billion in equity awards.
“As a franchise, I have no idea how the PGA Tour operates. At TPC Sawgrass on Wednesday, he stated, “I believe the players should be paid a fair share if there is enough money out there that is sustainable.”
As of right now, I’m not sure what a fair share is. Who am I to just say no to SSG if they want to invest funds in that kind of gift to compensate elite players? However, if I don’t get paid, I won’t lose my cool. Assuming that makes sense.
Therefore, I’m not really sure how this is sustainable financially. It goes without saying that I believe a mechanism should be in place that provides for the players to be paid in accordance with the growth of the PGA Tour, particularly if that growth results in increased viewership and business. If that means awarding the players an SSG grant, then so be it.
But the truth is, I’m not sure. Again, that’s probably a component of me, and I should research that further in order to better understand myself.”
RETIRING TO FLORIDA
Up until now, Hovland has stayed in Oklahoma, where he went to college. The World No. 4 moved to South Florida, home to many of the finest players in the world, possibly to take advantage of the superior year-round weather and lower taxes.
He hasn’t decided on the location of his future home club yet.
Yes, I’m still attempting to decide where I want to practice there on a full-time basis. So far, I’ve had a terrific time. Other than playing golf, I haven’t really been doing anything,” he remarked.
“It goes without saying that South Florida is the best spot to play golf relative to other locations. It’s true that I miss Oklahoma; the people there are wonderful, and the golf is excellent. You have some challenging conditions that you have to work hard in, which is something you don’t always have in South Florida, despite the fact that it is windy enough to provide some challenge.
“But I do miss Oklahoma’s chilly, extremely windy days and other weather conditions. However, for regular practice, the weather is usually pleasant enough and the facilities are always in excellent condition for you to practice chipping and putting and all that.
Consequently, I’ve advised the men at Oklahoma State, for instance, that even if your practice facilities aren’t perfect, you still need to use them to your advantage in order to improve. Hopefully, this will benefit you in the future.
Therefore, simply relocating to Florida won’t improve my performance. Although I believe it’s much simpler to practice there, I still have to practice in a method that will help me get better.”
THE “GENIUS” IS PETE DYE.
The fourth hole of Sawgrass Golf Club
The most well-known course designed by the late Pete Dye is TPC Sawgrass, and Hovland is a huge admirer of the renowned architect.
The 26-year-old said, “I’m a big fan of Pete Dye golf courses in general.”
“In my opinion, this course effectively separates the players who are performing at their highest level each week; if you’re not doing at all, you will be penalized.
The golf course is great, and I did well here the past two years, so hopefully I can improve on that. There are a lot of visually challenging tee shots, little greens, and fantastic potential to shoot low scores, but there’s also a lot of water and other things going on.
“I simply believe he creates fair golf courses; yet, even though there may not appear to be much area from the tee, there is plenty of room until you get up there. It’s simply really threatening visually, and I think he makes great use of angles, especially on par-3 holes.
“I think he’s just a genius, and I really like a lot of his golf courses.”
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