"I got a little too greedy"- Viktor Hovland learns from his mistakes at The Masters
Viktor Hovland holds the lead after playing 18 holes at the RBC Heritage. The Norwegian golfer is aiming to extend his lead and win the tournament. He learned from his mistakes at The Masters, which left him to settle for seventh position.
Viktor Hovland took the lead at the Augusta tournament after the first round. But a few bad shots led him to slip down to seventh place. However, he is more careful with his game at the RBC Heritage and is looking forward to securing the lead till the end.
Speaking about his game, Viktor Hovland said as quoted by the PGA Tour:
"I took a big lesson from not short-sliding myself as much last week. I got a little too greedy and I missed it in the wrong sports, and I just can't allow myself to do that."
Always learning.
After holding the first round co-lead, Viktor Hovland eventually finished T7 at the Masters.
He looks to learn from last week as he owns the solo lead @RBC_Heritage. https://t.co/E0moJWrDb3
Viktor Hovland registered a one-stroke lead at the 2023 RBC Heritage after finishing the first round with a scoring deficit of seven.
He started the tournament with a birdie on the 14th hole and then made two consecutive birdies on the 16th and 17th holes. Hovland played a bogey-free round with seven birdies to the wrap-up at 64.
"I just kind of kept trusting the process" - Viktor Hovland opens up about his performance at the RBC Heritage
The rain delayed the first round of the RBC Heritage, ending with Viktor Hovland finishing at 64. Jimmy Walker trailed behind Hovland along with Brian Harman and Aaron Rai.
Interestingly, the top five positions on the leaderboard are secured by golfers settling in bottom positions for odd picks while the top picks struggle with their performances.
Viktor Hovland played a bogey-free round with seven birdies. He missed his shot in the first four holes of the tournament. However, he did not lose confidence and finally made a birdie on the fifth hole.
“Instead of freaking out or questioning all the reads that you make, that’s not going to fix anything,” Viktor Hovland said. “So I just kind of kept trusting the process.”
Leaderboard after Thursday @RBC_Heritage ⛳️
1. Viktor Hovland -7
T2. Brian Harman -6
T2. Jimmy Walker (thru 16)
T2. Aaron Rai (thru 15)
T5. Joel Dahmen - 5
T5. Matt Fitzpatrick
T5. Sungjae Im
T5. Justin Rose
T5. Scott Stallings
T5. Zach Johnson
Here's the full leaderboard for the RBC Heritage after the first round:
- 1. Viktor Hovland
- T2. Brian Harman
- T2. Jimmy Walker
- T2. Aaron Rai
- T5. Joel Dahmen
- T5. Scott Stallings
- T5. Matt Fitzpatrick
- T5. Zach Johnson
- T5. Sungjae Im
- T5. Justin Rose
- T11. Xander Schauffele
- T11. Rickie Fowler
- T11. Andrew Putnam
- T11. Wyndham Clark
- T15. Emiliano Grillo
- T15. Terrell Hatton
- T15. Matt Kuchar
- T15. Ernie Els
- T15. Patrick Rodgers
- T15. Mark Hubbard
- T15. Adam Long
- T15. Taylor Moore
- T15. Scottie Scheffler
- T15. Jordan Spieth
- T15. Stewart Cink
- T15. Kramer Hickok
- T15. Doug Ghim
- T28. Austin Smotherman
- T28. Jim Herman
- T28. Erik Van Rooyen
- T28. Sam Burns
- T28. Justin Thomas
- T28. Chris Kirk
- T28. Ryan Brehm
- T28. Beau Hossler
- T28. Hayden Buckley
- T28. Nate Lashley
- T28. Tommy Fleetwood
- T28. Billy Horschel
- T28. Lucas Glover
- T28. Patrick Cantlay
- T28. Robert Streb
- T28. Adam Scott
- T28. Gary Woodland
- T28. Scott Piercy
- T28. Carson Young