NASSAU (Bahamas) – Windy conditions can cause golf balls to go astray. It was easy to see Viktor Hovland’s scorecard, a 2-under 70 at Albany Club on Friday that included an eagle as well as four birdies. It was not easy for him.
He said, “It didn’t feel like that, certainly not, no.”
Hovland, the current champion, claims he doesn’t have his ‘A game’. Tiger Woods used to say that, but despite struggling with his putter and swing, he played well enough to take a one-stroke lead in the Hero World Challenge.
It’s strange. I felt like it was windy, and that I missed so many putts. He said that he still doesn’t feel like he’s hitting the ball very well. “But the ball’s moving straight and I’m giving my self looks.” It just doesn’t feel great and I’m missing quite a few putts. We ended up at 2 under today so that’s good.
Hovland made three birdies in succession, starting at No. 13 but his highlight was holing his third shot from 84 yard in the right rough to make it a par-5.
“Kind of had an odd lie on the upslope. He said that the wind was to his right, so it wasn’t a very comfortable shot. I aimed it at 30 feet from the pin, and hit it like a 50-degree. This was to avoid the wind. It spun a bit at the end, so I shouted “go” and it just slam dunked in. It was my first time doing that.
However, this is not the first time that the Oklahoma State Cowboy has played in windy conditions.
Hovland said, “Yeah it blows like that all the time in Oklahoma,” and recalled playing in the Big 12 conference tournament at Prairie Dunes, Kansas. “My freshman year, I couldn’t get the ball above the ground. I loved it. I was leading by at least three to four shots after nine holes, and shot 1 under the front nine. It was my best ever performance in this wind. That was a lot of fun.
He said that the hardest part about playing in the wind is putting in the wind.
Hovland said, “You’re grinding in three-footers.” He shot his first round in 70s at Albany Club. It’s windy, it’s grainy, the greens are fast, so you don’t just have to ram the putts into the greens. You need to kind of “die” the putts and then the wind can hit it harder.
Hovland has a one-stroke advantage over Scottie Scheffler and Xander Schauffele. Cameron Young, Collin Morikawa, and all four of them represented Team USA at September’s Presidents Cup.
