Viktor Hovland admitted he nearly pulled out of the PGA Championship such has been the state of his game in 2024.
The Norwegian enjoyed a stellar 2023 that included a runner-up finish in this event 12 months ago and a FedEx Cup triumph but made a surprising change of coach ahead of this season which seemed to backfire.
He parted ways with Joseph Mayo and hooked up with Grant Waite in a bid to get better but has a best finish of T19 in 2024 and missed the cut at The Masters.
Now back with Mayo, Hovland seems to have quickly turned the corner but revealed how close he came to skipping the second men’s Major of the year after a Saturday 66 in Kentucky.
Speaking to SiriusXM PGA Tour Radio’s Jason Sobel, he said: “I was almost considering pulling out of this event just because I wasn’t playing good at all. Things didn’t feel very good and when they don’t feel good, it’s like what’s the point of going and playing? I’d rather just go and work on it.”
Surprised by the omission, he was pushed to be more specific and joked: “Damn it, I shouldn’t have said that.”
He then added: “When you’re playing bad, thoughts are racing and that’s just what you’re thinking
“Obviously didn’t make the decision. Obviously decided to come here and play instead. I think it’s just kind of in the moment when you’re playing bad, you just wanna go home.”
Although Hovland’s struggles and those of the regular recreational golfer aren’t comparable, it shows the pros aren’t as unflappable as they often seem.
The speed of the turnaround has been impressive, though, and Hovland could yet go to bed on Sunday night as a Major champion.
Discussing what makes he and Mayo such a good match ahead of his final round at Valhalla, he added: “He knows my swing really well. He's really, really smart, and just has a way of looking at my swing and kind of knowing what it is right away.
“Felt like I got some really good answers, was able to apply some of the feels right away, and I saw improvement right away. Yeah, it's easy to keep going then.”
