Viktor Hovland has seemed like a shell of himself all through 2024. He missed the reduce in three of 4 majors and completed the common season ranked 57th within the FedEx Cup standings—a far cry from how he performed a yr in the past.
So, provided that the highest 50 gamers qualify for subsequent week’s BMW Championship in Colorado and acquire entry into all eight Signature Occasions in 2025, Hovland wanted to show in efficiency in Memphis. And to date, he has.
The 26-year-old Norwegian fired a much-needed 7-under 63 on Friday to soar up the leaderboard by practically 40 locations. He’s additionally at present projected to complete inside the highest 50.
“That was much more enjoyable,” Hovland mentioned.
“Yeah, eight birdies and a 63, that makes it much more enjoyable.”
Hovland made six of these par-breakers on the entrance 9 to exit with a gap 30. His lone dropped shot of the day got here on the difficult par-4 fifth, because of a missed tee shot that discovered the green bunker. However he rallied from that mistake with three consecutive birdies on the seventh, eighth, and ninth.
His two others got here on the par-5 sixteenth and par-4 seventeenth holes later within the spherical, thus wrapping up an excellent day on the course.
Hovland’s 63 is the bottom rating he has shot all season on the PGA Tour. His earlier finest got here through the third spherical of the Vacationers Championship, when he shot a 64 and in the end tied for twentieth. However the stakes are a lot higher this week in Memphis.
But, Hovland shouldn’t be letting that further strain get to him.
“It’s nonetheless the identical recreation plan,” Hovland mentioned.
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“I simply occurred to get off to a pleasant begin and journey the momentum from there.”
His putter was an enormous momentum enhance early, as Hovland in the end holed 126 toes price of putts on Friday.
“I began making all the pieces. That was positively good. Positively hit some good method photographs, as nicely. I believe I had three or 4 tap-ins for birdie. Three of them have been early on, in order that was good,” Hovland defined.
“My misses are getting slightly bit tighter, in order that’s good. Nevertheless it nonetheless doesn’t fairly really feel the place it’s imagined to be, however it’s nonetheless good to see when issues are slightly bit off, I can nonetheless exit right here and shoot a very good rating.”
Little doubt that Hovland nonetheless has loads of work to do to regain the shape that received him the FedEx Cup a season in the past. However he believes he’s headed in the proper path, which is a constructive signal for the two-time Ryder Cup star.
“At the least now I can hit some photographs the place, okay, that’s the previous stuff that appears like and looks like what it used to. In order that’s very constructive,” Hovland added.
“Then, different photographs, I revert again to some previous habits. It’s simply type of persevering with to work on the issues that I’m engaged on, and hopefully, I’ll see extra of the nice swings once more.”
He made loads of strong swings on Friday, and if he can proceed to take action over the weekend, he can have no hassle making it to Colorado subsequent week for the BMW Championship.
Jack Milko is a golf workers author for SB Nation’s Taking part in By way of. You should definitely take a look at @_PlayingThrough for extra golf protection. You may observe him on Twitter @jack_milko as nicely.
