Viktor Hovland has emerged as the surprise winner of the Travelers Championship after beating Scottie Scheffler in a playoff.
Coming up against the formidable world number one, Hovland would have been feeling the pressure at the start of the playoff.
But he held his nerve to hole a fantastic birdie putt on the 18th hole, with his opponent rolling his effort agonizingly wide.
It represents a superb PGA Tour win for Hovland, who deserves big praise after putting in the hard yards at the US Open earlier this month.
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Viktor Hovland’s efforts after US Open missed cut pay off at the Travelers Championship
Hovland is a surprise champion at TPC River Highlands because of his tough time at last week’s US Open, where he missed the cut.
He certainly wasn’t the only high-profile player to fall well short at Shinnecock Hills, but he was quick to try to make amends at the Travelers Championship.
Shortly after his missed cut, the Norwegian was spotted working hard on his game on the range alongside his coach.
And that work has now massively paid off in Connecticut, where he edged out Scheffler to claim his eighth PGA Tour win.
It also represents his first success since the 2025 Valspar Championship, and arrives at the ideal time for The Open Championship.
Scottie Scheffler continues unwanted trend with Travelers Championship near miss
Of course, all credit must go to Hovland for staying firmly focused on the task at hand after darkness forced the event into an extra day.
He was, however, driven on by several Norwegian supporters who are currently in the United States following their country at the World Cup.
Hovland was overjoyed to win in front of his compatriots, but at the same time he was evidently sympathetic towards Scheffler.
And such compassion is certainly understandable, with the American having just finished as runner-up for the fourth time this season.
He also lost in a playoff at the RBC Heritage, as well as finishing solo second at The Masters and the Cadillac Championship.
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