Viktor Hovland is the boss of his personal swing.
As he prepares to (hopefully) compete in The Sentry, Hovland advised Norsk Golf that he has once more break up with swing teacher Joe Mayo.
“I now not work with Mayo,” Hovland stated to the Norwegian outlet. “We ended that collaboration a couple of month in the past. … I don’t want to enter element about it, however we disagreed a bit about the way in which ahead, what’s greatest for me.”
Hovland began working with Joe Mayo in 2023, although they first parted methods after Hovland received the FedExCup that August, solely to reunited previous to this 12 months’s PGA Championship. Hovland additionally labored this 12 months with coaches Grant Waite and Dana Dahlquist, and he stated he’s presently sending movies to “one other coach” in a consulting capability.
“I really feel like I’ve realized a lot now and have a lot experience, that I don’t want anybody holding my hand anymore,” Hovland stated.
Hovland is coming off a 12 months during which he didn’t win a match for the primary time since turning professional in 2019 – Hovland revealed a stress fracture in his proper pinky finger, which pressured him to take a pair weeks off after the Tour Championship – and he performed simply 17 occasions in 2024, six fewer than he did the 12 months prior.
However he nonetheless superior to East Lake final fall and stays inside the highest 10 of the Official World Golf Rating, at No. 8, to start this new season.
“It steals a lot vitality to compete when the technical points will not be proper,” Hovland stated. “The coincidences make the sport cruel, after which I’d relatively go dwelling and follow. … And but, I got here near successful my first main this 12 months. It taught me that my sport doesn’t must be excellent.”
As for this week, Hovland isn’t simply coping with some calcium buildup across the cartilage in that injured finger, which Hovland says has left the finger “a bit uncovered,” he is also nursing a fractured toe, and damage that he suffered final week.
Hovland initially shared an x-ray picture of the fractured proper little toe, and he defined to Norsk Golf that the damage occurred in his lodge room in Hawaii. He’d fallen asleep with the lights and his journey garments nonetheless on, and when he awoke to show off the lights and undress, he by chance stubbed his toe on the nook of the mattress. A visit to the emergency room revealed the fracture, which Hovland says will take 4 to 6 weeks to completely heal.
After hitting some balls barefoot whereas making an attempt to take the pressure off his injured foot, Hovland says the ache is lessening and he’ll wait till Thursday to resolve whether or not he’ll play at Kapalua or withdraw.
“It’s not best,” Hovland stated. “However adversity builds character, and all of us want just a few punches within the face every so often.”
