Viktor Hovland showed some signs of a return to form by carding a nice second round at the Valspar Championship to go within a few shots of the leaders.
Hovland has endured a miserable run of form in the last year or so.
Indeed, Hovland was spotted putting extra work in at the Arnold Palmer late into the night, such was his disappointing performance at Bay Hill.
Furthermore, Tiger Woods’ former coach Hank Haney has expressed concern for Hovland and with it being a Ryder Cup year, Hovland faces a tough battle to get his place.
Now, after round one at the Valspar, Hovland has revealed he is very much still struggling.
Viktor Hovland shares why he’s so hard on himself despite improved performance at the Valspar Championship
Hovland was speaking after his second round of four under put him in contention at the Valspar.
However, the Norwegian also revealed that he’s still very much dealing with problems in his swing and he believes that any PGA Tour player would struggle with his issues.
“I am hard on myself but that’s also why I am good. If I wasn’t hard on myself I probably wouldn’t be out here and I know that even with terrible mechanics I can still get out here and shoot a nice score but that can also lead to 80 shots at the Players because I don’t have control on what I’m doing,” Hovland said.
“So you get to a place with water and trees on every hole and you know those same shots that might be in the fairway or rough at an easier golf course, it’s going to cost you and I know that.
“If I’m standing over the ball and I’m expecting it to start there, everything in my golf thing is feeling like it starts over there and it starts right, you know you can’t play with that. I don’t care who you are, it’s just not going to work. You have to be that honest and get to work.”
Viktor Hovland’s major form in 2024 is a big worry
For a former FedEx Champion and a player who was so impressive in the last Ryder Cup, Viktor Hovland’s drop off has been quite something.
Hovland has only made the cut in two of five events this season but it’s his form from 2024 overall which will be the big worry.
Despite a runner up position at the FedEx St Jude and a third in the PGA Championship, the rest of his year left a lot to be desired.
Yes, he finished in T12 for the TOUR Championship but he missed the cut at The Masters, The Open and the US Open to compound a miserable effort in the majors barring that PGA attempt.
With The Masters once again upon us in a month, Hovland faces a massive rush to get his form back and this second round at the Valspar will have to be taken forward and improved on further.
As of now, Hovland is playing with fire in terms of his Ryder Cup spot and he could end up tumbling down the rankings if things don’t improve soon.
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