Viktor Hovland's Elite U.S. Open Ball Striking Pushes Putting Woes Aside

Newsweek

15 hours ago

Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources.
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Viktor Hovland put himself into contention at Oakmont Country Club after an impressive second round at the U.S. Open.
He carded a 2-under 68 to sit at 1-under overall and was three shots off the current leaders. Granted, the afternoon wave still has to play, but for now, Hovland is inside the top five.
The former Oklahoma State Cowboy started his second round with two birdies in his first three holes. He followed it up with an eagle on the par-4 17th, his eighth hole.
Five birdies. One eagle.
Viktor Hovland 🇳🇴 is back in a tie for 2nd. pic.twitter.com/DBZIlEnJye — U.S. Open (@usopengolf) June 13, 2025
From there, the Norwegian had to take a few licks on the chin to avoid disaster. He made a bogey on 18, followed it up with a birdie on 1, and then a double bogey on the par-4 2nd. Hovland redeemed himself with back-to-back birdies at 4 and 5, but he would bogey two of his final four holes.
Through 36 holes, Hovland is in the top 10 of the four main strokes gained categories. He is No. 7 off the tee at +1.46, No. 10 in approach at +1.86 and No. 5 in short game at +1.92.
His one glaring weakness, at least on the stat sheet, is his putting. Hovland sits No. 116 in strokes gained putting at -0.76.
It did seem like he fixed many of his issues on the green in Round 2. If you look at the stats from Friday, Hovland picked up +1.54 on the greens, but more impressively, he picked up +3.66 in strokes gained short game.
He kept it together to avoid too many big numbers and a collapse. A big reason for that is his ball striking. Hovland would not be in contention right now without some of those shots.
The seven-time PGA Tour winner continues to tinker with his swing, but at Oakmont, so far, he seems to have found some momentum.
"Still haven't been overly confident in my ball-striking up until recently. Last week we saw some really good progress, and earlier this week I was very happy with some of the shots I was hitting in the practice rounds," Hovland said. "Super excited that I was able to take that out with me in the tournament."
The 27-year-old hit 14-of-18 greens in regulation on Friday after only hitting six fairways. He grinded out a strong second-round score, but there were some instances where the 2023 FedEx Cup champ did not have things go his way.
OAKMONT, PENNSYLVANIA - JUNE 13: Viktor Hovland of Norway reacts on the 12th hole during the second round of the 125th U.S. OPEN at Oakmont Country Club on June 13, 2025 in Oakmont, Pennsylvania.
OAKMONT, PENNSYLVANIA - JUNE 13: Viktor Hovland of Norway reacts on the 12th hole during the second round of the 125th U.S. OPEN at Oakmont Country Club on June 13, 2025 in Oakmont, Pennsylvania.
Photo byOne of those moments was at the par-4 2nd.
"That was frustrating," he noted. "Didn't want to miss it left off the tee, so I oversliced it a foot in the rough."
"I was expecting a lie that I could chase up the green there, but couldn't even cover the bunker, and then it's up against the lip. Did a good job to get it out in the fairway, and then hit my wedge shot too short and made a nice two-putt for a double bogey."
That moment made him remember he was playing in a major championship.
"I told Shay [Knight], 'Yeah, I just got U.S. Opened right there.' There's not much you can do about it," Hovland said honestly. "At least I was playing well until that point, so you've just got to go back to what you were doing before."
The 2025 Valspar champion was able to compartmentalize and keep focus, which isn't always the case for him.
"For some reason, I've just been in a nice mental state this week," he noted. "Both my rounds have been very up and down. I feel like if it had happened at another tournament, for example, I could have potentially lost my mind there a little bit. I didn't come close. I was pretty happy with that. Even after the double on 2. Yeah, I kept it together really nicely."
Hovland sits in a good spot at 1-under overall, especially since there are just five players under par. If he continues to shoot consistent scores, the 27-year-old could be looking at his first major championship.
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