Viktor Hovland is a perfectionist and he had every reason to be.
“I simply believe that you might as well do something well if you put your heart and soul into it.
It seems strange to me that, despite the fact that we are professional sportsmen, those who wish to get better are sometimes dismissed as perfectionists who spend too much time on the periphery of the game. It seems like that’s what we do; we’re here to improve and win competitions. What are you doing, then, if you’re not going to make an effort to improve?” Hovland said after winning the Valspar Championship on a thrilling Sunday outside Tampa.
With a final-round 67 at the Copperhead Course at Innisbrook Resort, Hovland won the Valspar Championship by a single stroke on Sunday. He finished at 11-under, one stroke ahead of a determined Justin Thomas, who bogeyed two of his last three holes for a final score of 66. The Valspar is Hovland’s first PGA TOUR victory since he won the FedExCup and solidified his place in the top division of professional golf in the summer of 2023 with back-to-back victories at the BMW Championship and TOUR Championship. He felt that there was a gap between his game and its full potential, which made him happy but not satisfied. He researched new theories, cycled among swing instructors, and suffered a sharp decline in his performance. In 2024, he only managed two top-10 finishes, and in 2025, he joined the Valspar event but failed to place.
When asked on Sunday if he thought of himself as a perfectionist, Hovland responded with a defiant demeanour that suggested he has heard the jargon tossed around the golf world over the last 18 months or so. Hovland is aware that some people may question why he’s chasing that sensation of perfection. Was Hovland searching in vain for answers that were never there, like a dog chasing its tail ?
You have to keep your brain spinning as you listen to Hovland everytime he talks about motor patterns, stopping the body, learning and integrating knowledge, and linking feelings. He talks about finding the underlying “problems” in his swing and fixing them gradually, but his long list of coaching adjustments indicates that he rarely, if ever, is really satisfied with his performance.
Despite his belief that he is still a work in progress, the Norwegian refuted any idea that his game has deteriorated this week. According to his long-time caddie Shay Knight, he discovered a swing feel early in the week that brought back memories of his early professional days. He used that feeling to his advantage and won his 8th PGA TOUR title at the Copperhead Course, where he finished 19th in Strokes Gained: Off-the-Tee and sixth in Strokes Gained: Approach the Green.
“He’s quite demanding on himself, but he tends to take it on board quickly once he discovers a small swing cue or notion. I felt something exceptional was going to happen this week with the swing thought because it just seemed to click when he had it. It was something minor that he used to do in the past, but with his prior speed training and other activities, he has sort of moved on from it. With that swing thought, he took off. He plays with confidence. He can defeat anyone when he has that confidence, and this week he has done just that.” said Knight, who has worked with Hovland since his first year as a pro in 2019
On Sunday, Hovland agreed that he wants to go back to his previous feelings.
“It’s not like I’m making things up, especially when I know there are problems there. I can demonstrate with facts that my previous work was objectively superior to my current work. Why don’t I attempt to resume my previous activities ?” Hovland said.
Following three consecutive missed cuts, including a first-round 80 at THE PLAYERS Championship last week, Hovland recently got back together with Grant Waite, a former TOUR pro with whom he split in early 2024. The two had a fruitful range session last Monday in Orlando, which motivated Hovland to stay in the Valspar field. On Tuesday and Wednesday, Waite went with Hovland to the Valspar for additional practice, and the progress persisted until the winner’s circle.
Throughout the Valspar, Hovland stated that his game was still in development; however, he quickly clarified that certain elements were missing. Hovland provided some insight on Sunday night with a story, but it’s difficult to reconcile that thinking with a PGA TOUR win. After a bad round, he frequently talks to his mother, who always tries to cheer him up by saying, “Oh, there were a lot of people that played poorly today,” but it never works.
“He is a perfectionist, but he is also very hard on himself.” Knight said.
It’s interesting to note that Hovland’s meticulous nature isn’t limited to golf. He’s content with an 80% threshold in other parts of his life; he wants to reach 100% in golf because the body has a limited amount of energy. He will continue to unturn every stone he can in the game if he doesn’t feel completely there. His swing and its rhythms may get confused, or he may experience a mini-slump. But he’ll figure it out because he’s an insane competitor with extraordinary talent. He is certain that Waite is the best person to assist him in getting there after winning the Valspar.
“I’ve provided him a variety of golf swings, and he’s clearly put his all into examining them. It’s difficult since I have a really unusual and distinctive pattern, and I believe that most coaches would prefer that I swing more conventionally in an attempt to address the issue. But my golf stroke isn’t truly like that. And I have a lot of faith in Grant because he can see it and understands the type of matchups that are necessary for it to succeed. It was evidently a successful first week together, so let’s aim to build on that.” Hovland said of Waite.
Hovland’s skill level increased on Sunday at the Valspar, particularly on the 16th par-4 hole, which is the first of the renowned “Snake Pit” closing trio. After finding the left trees with 3-wood on Thursday and Saturday, he choose 3-iron off the tee and found the right side of the fairway, trailing Thomas by one stroke. He flagged his approach shot after taking dead aim, converting the birdie to take a portion of the lead after stripping the 7-iron from 187 yards to 6 feet.
He went right at the flag when I said, “We want to be a hair left of this flag because you can’t miss it right,” and you can see he’s confident when he does that. Today’s 7-iron into 16 was incredible. He likely needed to make just one shot that week in order to win the golf event, and he did.
After Thomas made bogey in the group ahead, Hovland feathered a 5-iron to 12 feet for birdie at the par-3 17th hole, providing the cushion to make bogey at the par-4 18th. At No. 18, Hovland missed the fairway straight out of the tee, but he chipped to 11 feet on his second shot, playing it just short-right of the green, and made the winning bogey with a two-putt.
“Other than golf, I don’t give a damn about anything else. Since I don’t have the time or energy to devote to other things as much, it goes without saying that you can’t have a perfectionist mindset when you only get to accomplish certain things occasionally. I thus aim for 80%, just do well enough, and then perhaps, you will notice an improvement over time, just grow a little bit better every day. However, if I don’t put the effort into something and I’m not very good at it, I’m not too hard on myself.” Hovland said
But golf has long been a part of my life and takes up much of my time and thoughts, so what am I doing if I’m not investing that time in doing it well ?
Hovland might fall down again – but he’d definitely find his way back up.
