2023 has indeed been a whirlwind year for Norwegian golfer Viktor Hovland. Despite the ups and downs, Hovland managed to shine on several significant stages, showcasing remarkable resilience and skill.
One of the standout moments of Hovland's year was clinching the prestigious FedEx Cup Playoffs title. His journey to this achievement included a series of impressive performances, such as completing three consecutive under-par rounds at the St. Jude Championship and delivering a stunning final-round 61 at the BMW Championship outside Chicago. Hovland capped off his FedEx Cup run by securing the Tour Championship in Atlanta, cementing his status as one of the season's top performers.
Hovland's postseason scoring average was an impressive 66.17, underscoring his consistency and competitive edge. However, his path to success was not without its challenges. Entering the St. Jude Championship ranked 57th in the FedEx Cup standings, Hovland had to fight his way up the ranks. Notably, Lucas Glover was absent from the tournament that week, seemingly leaving room for Hovland's ascent.
Tackling Challenges
Despite his remarkable triumphs, Hovland grappled with certain struggles, particularly with his strokes gained approach numbers, which fell to +0.46 per round. Alarmingly, he ranked 175th out of 176 players on the PGA Tour in strokes gained around the green. Additionally, he had only one top-10 finish in the season and recorded the worst total strokes gained output of his career.
Reflecting on his game, Hovland shared insights into the adjustments and challenges he faced. "The things that I did in my swing that made me good, that made me able to predict a certain ball flight, I went home and tried to do a certain move – not necessarily because I had in mind that I wanted to change my pattern," he explained. "I knew my pattern was really good, but I was upset that I wasn't cutting the ball as much as I would have liked."
"Then in the offseason I made a conscious effort to try to cut the ball more, and when I did that, I ruined a relationship that happens in my swing that makes it really difficult for me to control the face coming down," he continued. "So now it's just kind of me learning from that. I know exactly why it happened. I know exactly what happens because I've gotten myself measured, and now it's just kind of a process of getting back to where I was. But at least I know I have all the data and the facts on the table to go about it."
The Mental Game
Hovland's candidness about his struggles extends beyond the physical aspects of his game. "It's just not that fun to play golf when you don't know where the ball is going. I do pride myself in trying to make the best out of it, but it gets to a point where you kind of lose that belief – you just see a shot, and that's not good enough," he admitted. "I can try to grind my hardest. I can try to chip in from there. But you do that too often, too many times during the course of a round or a tournament, [and] it's too much to overcome."
He added, "I feel like it's a waste of time for me to be playing golf if that's where I'm at; I'd rather be off the golf course and work on it, trying to figure out why I'm doing those things."
A Path to Improvement
While Hovland's journey has been laden with challenges, his determination to improve remains unwavering. "I'm not sure how long it's going to take for me to play my best golf. It might be this week. It might be next week. But at least now I'm on a path to progress. I'm on a path to improvement," he stated. "Whereas before, one thing is playing bad, but you don't know why and you don't know how to fix it. That's very challenging mentally. But at least now we're – I might play terrible this week, but at least I feel like I'm on a path to improvement, and that's all that kind of matters for me."
As Hovland looks to the future, his commitment to refining his game and learning from his experiences offers a promising outlook. With his talent and work ethic, there's little doubt that he will continue to be a formidable presence in the world of golf.