Viktor Hovland's offseason gamble places FedEx Cup protection in jeopardy getting into St. Jude Championship 2024

The FedEx Cup Playoffs belonged to Viktor Hovland in 2023. Three straight under-par rounds to shine off the St. Jude Championship that yr set the stage for a full-on dash to the end line. A final-round 61, which featured a back-nine 28, noticed the Norwegian conquer the BMW Championship exterior Chicago earlier than doing the identical per week later in Atlanta on the Tour Championship to say the season-long crown.

Hovland’s postseason scoring common of 66.17, coupled with a sensational Ryder Cup efficiency later that fall, spurred discuss that he may very well be the perfect participant within the recreation. That was final yr, although.

This yr has been a far completely different story for the affable proper hander as Hovland finds himself in a precarious place forward of his FedEx Cup protection. Getting into the St. Jude Championship ranked 57th within the standings, Hovland is on the surface wanting in for subsequent week’s BMW Championship the place the highest 50 will play.

An omission from the sector in Colorado would imply all three playoff occasions can be with no defending champion when factoring in Lucas Glover’s absence from this week’s match.

The place precisely all of it went mistaken for Hovland has been troublesome to discern regardless of an openness about his struggles — severing ties with numerous swing coaches earlier than reuniting with Joe Mayo, getting misplaced down rabbit holes on YouTube, enduring hours-long, hair-pulling vary periods. Nevertheless, the 27-year-old admitted Tuesday in Memphis that every one the ache and struggling stemmed from the need to see his golf ball transfer left-to-right.

“The issues that I did in my swing that made me good, that made me in a position to predict a sure ball flight, I went dwelling and tried to do a sure transfer — not essentially as a result of I had in thoughts that I needed to vary my sample. I knew my sample was actually good,” Hovland mentioned, “however I used to be upset that I wasn’t chopping the ball as a lot as I might have appreciated. My ball flight began to develop into a bit of little bit of a draw, which is okay. I used to be nonetheless hitting it good, however generally, visually, I might have appreciated to have seen the reduce.

“Then within the offseason I made a acutely aware effort to attempt to reduce the ball extra, and after I did that, I ruined a relationship that occurs in my swing that makes it actually troublesome for me to manage the face coming down. So now it is simply form of me studying from that. I do know precisely why it occurred. I do know precisely what occurs as a result of I’ve gotten myself measured, and now it is simply form of a technique of getting again to the place I used to be. However a minimum of I do know I’ve all the info and the information on the desk to go about it.”

Regardless of his short-game shortcomings — Hovland ranks a hundred and seventy fifth out of 176 gamers on the PGA Tour in strokes gained across the inexperienced — rightfully taking the brunt of the criticism, it’s his iron play which could be the biggest trigger for concern. 

Amid the worst method season of his profession, Hovland’s strokes gained method numbers (+0.46 per spherical) are practically half of what they had been a yr in the past. He checks in behind gamers like Greyson Sigg, Dylan Wu, Sam Ryder and David Skinns, all of whom completed exterior the highest 100 within the FedEx Cup standings. Wrap all this up in a single bundle and also you get the yr Hovland has skilled — only one top-10 end and the worst whole strokes gained output of his profession. 

Hovland’s pattern measurement in 2024 is smaller than years previous. The Tour Championship represented his twentieth match of the calendar yr the final two seasons. If he’s to in some way make his approach to East Lake this time round, it can mark his seventeenth as he has optioned for a schedule consisting of main championships, signature occasions, the Olympics and only one different match.

This has left him extra time exterior the ropes to proceed down his path of progress however much less time seeing this progress in motion whereas beneath the gun. It is a troublesome balancing act for any golfer — engaged on one’s swing with out placing it in observe — however this has been Hovland’s most well-liked angle of assault.

“It is simply not that enjoyable to play golf when you do not know the place the ball goes,” Hovland mentioned. “I do delight myself in attempting to make the perfect out of it, nevertheless it will get to a degree the place you form of lose that perception — you simply see a shot, and that is not adequate. I can attempt to grind my hardest. I can attempt to chip in from there. However you do this too usually, too many occasions through the course of a spherical or a match, [and] it is an excessive amount of to beat. I really feel prefer it’s a waste of time for me to be enjoying golf if that is the place I am at; I might reasonably be off the golf course and work on it, attempting to determine why I am doing these issues.” 

There may be irony right here: If Hovland performs poorly this week, he won’t be on the grounds subsequent week with loads of time to work on his recreation off the course. An increase inside the highest 50 from his place has been achieved beforehand, however within the grand scheme of issues, it seems secondary for a person attempting to navigate his means again to the highest.

“I am unsure how lengthy it’ll take for me to play my greatest golf. It could be this week. It could be subsequent week. However a minimum of now I am on a path to progress. I am on a path to enchancment,” Hovland mentioned. “Whereas earlier than, one factor is enjoying dangerous, however you do not know why and you do not know how you can repair it. That is very difficult mentally. However a minimum of now we’re — I would play horrible this week, however a minimum of I really feel like I am on a path to enchancment, and that is all that form of issues for me.”