It was another near miss for Viktor Hovland at the US Open at Oakmont but the popular Norwegian was more than happy to lavish some praise on the winner, J.J. Spaun.
Spaun came back from a nightmare opening nine holes in the final round to win by two shots.
Spaun’s win culminated with a stunning long-range putt on the 18th after he got a read from Hovland who was in a similar position.
The American will pocket $4.3m for the win and will likely be in contention to play the Ryder Cup now as well.
Hovland, meanwhile, continues his run of being one of the nearly men in golf when it comes to the majors.
But while he didn’t win, Hovland was still in a good mood and gave Spaun his flowers afterwards.
What Viktor Hovland told J.J. Spaun after his winning US Open putt
It’s always hard to lose a golf tournament, especially a major, but Viktor Hovland has shown his class here with how he reacted to Spaun.
First off, Hovland was straight to Spaun after his monster putt on 18 and the live TV cameras picked up just what the European said to his rival.
“That was impressive dude, congrats,” Hovland was captured saying on course after Spaun’s putt.
Then, speaking to the media afterwards, Hovland once again praised Spaun, and admitted it was actually really cool to see it up close and live.
“Yeah, that was unbelievable. After his start, it just looked like he was out of it immediately. Everyone came back to the pack. I wasn’t expecting that really. I thought I had to shoot maybe 3-under par today to have a good chance, but obviously the conditions got really, really tough, and this golf course is just a beast,” Hovland added.
“Yeah, to watch him hole the putt on 12 down the hill there was unreal. And then he makes another one on 14 that was straight down the hill. And then the one on 18, it’s just absolutely filthy there.
“Yeah, that’s the U.S. Open for you right there. That’s pretty tough. It looked like it was going to have a lot of spin, but there was no doubt when it hit the pin that it was coming all the way back. I think he’s forgotten about that one now, though.”
Viktor Hovland’s time will come after another impressive showing
For a player who so often seems at odds with how he is playing and is more than happy to criticise his game, Viktor Hovland doesn’t half produce at times.
This week, nobody expected him to win or even come close and once again, he’s come within a whisker.
It very much feels a matter of when and not if for Hovland when it comes to landing a major championship.
Ultimately, there’ll be a week where everything comes together and he’ll win.
Right now, he’s on the right path and come the US Open in 2026, it wouldn’t be a surprise to see Hovland already in the major winner’s circle.
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