Viktor Hovland confirms LIV Golf decision with blunt two-word response
LIV Golf will not reveal Viktor Hovland’s PGA Tour ranking in the coming days as the Norwegian said all reports were “not true” when asked.
Despite recently missing the PGA Tour while playing in Hawaii, Viktor Hovland is not expected to lose just yet.
The Norwegian golfer has been heavily linked with a move to LIV Golf, with speculation mounting after Hovland skipped a PGA Tour event. However, according to Norsk Golf, when Hovland was contacted by Tom Rosenvin, president of the Norwegian Golf Association, he simply replied, “That’s not true.”
Hovland has a big move in 2024, but reports of him approaching LIV are untrue. He hired Grant Waite as his new coach in late 2023 after parting ways with “TrackMan Maestro” Joe Mayo.
Last season, Hovland won the FedEx Cup for the first time in his career, but he has yet to explain his decision to change coaches and adapt to his own style. But Waite worked with Charles Howell III, who mentored the Norwegian, who became a big name in 2019.
Hovland finished 22nd in The Sentry, his first race since changing trainers. Hovland and Waite met after The Sentry and spent several weeks working on 2024 Countryside in Norway.
The 26-year-old is tied for fourth in the PGA Tour standings as changes continue for Adrian Meronk to join Jon Rahm in Saudi Arabia. Hovland has quashed all rumors and now expects to finish the season as a member of the PGA Tour, but short game insider Matt Fisher believes it’s only a matter of time.
“These are some of the big events on both sides, including the DP World Tour, the PGA Tour and the MIA. He is rumored to be a player who could sign for LIV at any time.\” He continued: \”He will be part of the Clicks team, Martin Kaymer’s team.\”
But Hovland’s previous criticism of the PGA Tour’s LIV and fan opposition complicated his decision. “I don’t think their product is that great,” he told FORE at LIV Golf. “For example, I don’t like playing without a draft. You have to compete with 150 players and make cuts.
“If you don’t play enough, you’re out. Make the game clearer. I don’t think I would have become a better golfer if I had gone to LIV. Then, in a way, that’s the end of the discussion.”
“The management did not do their job properly. They see their players as a workforce, not part of their membership. After all, we are on the PGA Tour. “Nothing happens without the players,” he added, “when you see what goes on behind closed doors and how the management makes decisions that are not in the best interests of the players but are good for them and the players. What they think is better.”
