His achievement is not diminished, but l was the most memorable. It was l responding to the passionate and emphatic requests of Per Haugsrud for Eurosport Norway .
He does it again! Bjornstad exclaimed, “Our boy!” in 2020. He is so icy cold! That kid is amazing! He is a star!”
If you don’t have the video, it’s worth downloading from YouTube. Words won’t do the film justice. It is a special moment for Hovland. This is especially true because Bjornstad was the first Norwegian player to play on the PGA Tour. Hovland was thirteen years old when Bjornstad, a Norwegian pro golfer, retired and became the coach of Norway’s elite junior teams.
Hovland stated that he was “a little starstruck”. “A few years later, he’s commentating on my wins during Tour. That was cool, I thought. The emotions were obviously very real. It is cool to listen.”
Bjornstad, his team and others may lose their collective minds if Hovland, 25, wins again at El Camaleon Golf Course in Mayakoba, Riviera Maya. Steve Stricker, at the John Deere Classic in 2009, 2010, 2011, was the last player to win three consecutive Tour events. In the 40 years of the Tour’s history, only two other players have won the event – Tiger Woods (a staggering six times) and Stuart Appleby (2004-06).
Hovland stated that he loved the sport even before winning it twice during Wednesday’s pre-tournament interview. “It is very special to be a two-time champion. Yes, I’ll try to add one more this week.
Viktor Hovland, Norway, celebrates his 2021 World Wide Technology Championship win at Mayakoba El Camaleon Golf Course in Playa del Carmen. (Photo by Mike Ehrmann/Getty Images).
Hovland views El Camaleon as a par-71 course that plays to 7,017 yards. It is one of few courses where a fourth-year professional feels like a veteran. In 2016, Norway’s best finish was a T-5. Hovland played there for the World Amateur Team Championship. He made his PGA Tour debut there as an amateur in 2018, but missed the cut by one stroke. He missed the cut as a professional the next year. He’s taken revenge the last two years. Hovland was 7 strokes behind after 36 holes in 2020. He told his caddie that he wished he could have one of those weeks, where putting and long game were combined. “If I could do it, I would be fighting for a victory.”
He stuck to his game plan and it worked. He birdied the 72nd green to defeat Aaron Wise. This made him the fifth European player to win multiple PGA Tour titles since World War II. The Norwegian broadcast team was also affected by the heightened excitement of adolescents.
Bjornstad stated that “we had a collective headache once he was done.”
Hovland broke a tournament record last year by shooting a total of 72 holes of 23-under despite having his driver shaft snapped on the range the day before the tournament.
He said, “When something like this happens, you just kinda go, oh man, come on really, is that going to happen?”
Hovland was barely affected by the delay. After taking a shaft from James Hahn, Hovland shot 62 in round three and tied the tournament record for margin of victory (4 shots), having won on 20-under last year. In the past two seasons, he has led the field with 28 and 25 birdies.
We cannot get enough Norway’s call for Viktor Hovland to his ACE.
— NBC Sports (@NBCSports March 14, 2022
: Hovland, the Oklahoma State champion on Karsten Creek in Stillwater, said that it was like trying to do three-peats in Mexico.
“People kind of expected us to win, and we certainly expected to win,” he said. It can be a positive thing to have a home team, but it can also create additional pressure,” he stated. It all comes down to whether you feel confident about your game. If you don’t have the skills or the confidence to handle the pressure, it can make it harder to be successful. It all depends on your current game. It’s not something I see as a disadvantage.
