– We will never know if Viktor Hovland (-3) would have finished as the sole leader of the BMW Championship this Thursday had the rain not appeared and the subsequent suspension of play for more than two hours. We will never know, but it certainly looked that way. He finished before the storm, and the rain made things easier. In any case, since we don’t have a crystal ball, what is certain is that he signed off on a great round of golf. The key? The technique, of course. That bubble he can’t quite escape, although sometimes, like yesterday, he falls into a notable contradiction.
On one hand, he assured that on Tuesday he found a new feeling in his swing that helped him play so well on the first day. “I don’t want to go into too much detail, but basically, in the transition, I’ve been tilting, like with side bend, and I just don’t turn my chest as much as I used to. I confirmed that with an app and by watching some videos. So it was a quick feeling: instead of tilting from the top of the swing, I just feel like I’m turning a bit more to get my arms and hands more in front and not get so stuck.” That’s the explanation of what he found two days before the tournament started. He claims he reached that conclusion with the help of his coach.
However, at the same time, he doesn’t hide that when he doesn’t think about technique, he performs better. The great paradox in which Hovland has lived for some time. When asked why he thinks he performs better in the FedEx Cup Playoffs, of which he is a champion, the Nordic golfer pointed out: “I guess there’s something about being between a rock and a hard place and having to perform. Sometimes I think too much about swing mechanics, which I think is important, but when you’re in playoffs and I’m in 28th place and only the top 30 go through, it’s like: ‘OK, we have to forget about that a bit this week and just go out and play,’ and I think that’s helping me in the short term.”
If anyone understands it, let them explain it. When he plays without thinking about technique, it helps him in the short term, but he does nothing but go round and round the technical part without finding a solution for a long time. Someday Hovland will solve this dilemma, but if he becomes too obsessed, it’s possible that when he wants to find the way out, he won’t find it.
– Scottie Scheffler (-4) was particularly pleased with his performance from the tee. He feels he wasn’t good in Memphis and believes he has taken a step forward in Maryland. Quite the opposite of Rory McIlroy (PAR). “I definitely have to be in the fairway more often than in the first round. I don’t know why I only found the fairway when aiming left and hitting a fade. I think I’m going to do it that way all week,” he explains.
– What Scottie and Rory do agree on is the pleasure of playing together. “It’s a lot of fun. It’s a privilege to compete against the best players in the world week after week, and there’s nothing better than playing with Rory. He’s obviously very talented, and we always have fun together on the course.” McIlroy went even a bit further. “I love playing with Scottie. I’ve always liked it. I like the cadence with which he plays, his rhythm. He doesn’t take long. I feel like there are guys you like to pair with and others… some you don’t. I’ve always enjoyed playing with Scottie.”
– Robert MacIntyre (-8) gave a lot of credit this Thursday to the work he’s doing with Mike Kanski, a putting guru from the Phil Kenyon factory. “Since I changed putting coach at Pebble Beach this year, I took the right direction. I went back to doing what I used to do. You don’t expect to hole long putts. I don’t even know how long the one on the par 3 was, but it was far. Even so, I expect to hole putts. I work hard on it: on the reads, on the touch. When you fine-tune the eye, everything flows and it’s nice. I’ve been with different putting coaches and I do the same thing, just in a different way. I haven’t changed what I do on the putt since the PGA this year. We were trying something technical that was statistically better, but I didn’t feel comfortable. No… it didn’t feel right, so we adjusted that. We changed putter. We changed the technique again to make me feel comfortable. The priority is to get the putter face as square as possible at impact, which isn’t rocket science but is difficult. For me, that’s the priority now. And within a certain range, it’s all about rhythm and touch, and my touch is usually good.”
– It’s always good to listen to or read Tommy Fleetwood (-5). They are nuggets of common sense and normality. If you’re a good golfer and dream of being a professional, learn from Fleetwood. It’s a good path. On his quick recovery from the umpteenth disappointment last Sunday in Memphis, he explained: “Well, you just keep going. I said it at the time: there are many ways to be disappointed, and lately, I’ve been in a position to win and haven’t been able to close. The easy thing would be to let that affect you or get you down. But this week is huge. And next week? Another great opportunity. There’s no point in lamenting. Yes, you have to strive to see the positive, prepare well, and go in with a good mindset. As I said at Travelers and last week, the best scenario for me is to get back in a position to win and give myself another chance. I’ll keep learning, trying to get up there. Today was a great start, but it’s just one round. There’s a lot of golf to play on a tough course. I’ve been a professional for a long time. I’ve played terrible weeks. So playing well and being in the fight is a privilege that must be enjoyed.”
Being in a position to win is a privilege and must be enjoyed. It should be a mantra.
