Viktor Hovland Admits LIV Golf Bombshell Just Days Before The Open

Viktor Hovland has been linked with LIV Golf for essentially the duration of the 54-hole league’s existence. Despite massive links and even larger paychecks, the Norwegian has stayed with the PGA TOUR.

However, a recent interview with The Times spells different narratives between Hovland and the controversial golf league that is backed by the Saudi Public Investment Fund (PIF). Hovland, a six-time winner on the PGA TOUR, said he did have conversations with LIV and admitted there was a time that he was mulling a move to join Jon Rahm and Tyrell Hatton.

Hovland said that he was unwilling to give an unequivocal “no” to the league without knowing all the details, a move that he feels would have been hypocritical given his current situation on the PGA TOUR.

Credit: CNN

When approached by LIV Golf, Hovland wanted all the details about what his potentially new golf home would give him:

“If I’m going to say no to something, I want to at least know what it is.”

Hovland went on to say that the PGA TOUR’s big mistake was the fact that it did not give players full transparency about what was going on; something that has rubbed many TOUR pros the wrong way since it signed a framework agreement with the PIF last Summer:

“A lot of the players I’ve talked to want more transparency. And if you claim you’re representing our best interests, you at least meet with the people involved. Now we’re in this stalemate or whatever you want to call it, but it’s not something that required the prediction of 20 different chess moves.”

Potentially mulling a move at one point, Hovland has no ill will toward the players who left. He admits the money is a good advantage but that he already has plenty of it:

“I have no hard feelings against the guys that went. I completely understand because there are a lot of grey areas at the moment but, for me, I did not think their product was appealing enough to go. Obviously, they’re throwing out a lot of money, but I’ve already made a lot of money [Hovland earned more than £25million on the PGA Tour last year alone]. I’m not a very materialistic person. It’s nice to make life easier for yourself, but that’s not what gets me up in the morning.”

Like many other players, Hovland is more concerned about the legacy. Will $100 million make him a different person or allow him to live a different lifestyle than what he has now? Probably not. Instead, he believes he’d look back with regret:

“At the end of the day, the question is ‘What’s going to make me a better player?’ And hey, in 20 years, if I’m on the back end of my career, playing LIV Golf wouldn’t be too bad. It might have been a pretty cool opportunity but, right now, it’s something I think I’d probably look back [on] and regret.”

Hovland is seeking his first Major Championship win, coming close on multiple occasions. He will return to his native Europe in an effort to take home his first truly signature win.

Cover Image via Golf Digest