Viktor Hovland makes European pro debut at BMW PGA, eyes Ryder Cup
Rising star Hovland ready for his first BMW PGA test
Victor Hovland makes his first professional start in Europe at the BMW PGA Championship at Wentworth this week, and he is already setting his sights on making the European Ryder Cup team one day.
Hovland has been scorching the turf at just about every tournament he has teed it up since turning professional this summer, with seven top-16 finishes in a row across the United States.
Back on European soil for the first time in nine months, this time as a professional, the Norwegian star is eager to impress the British fans at the European Tour's flagship event of the year.
"It's been a while since I've played on British soil but we have a really cool venue this week, and hopefully I can continue to play some good golf," said Hovland, who became the first player to win low amateur honours at both the 2019 Masters and US Open since Matt Kuchar in 1998.
But while winning the BMW PGA Championship this week would be a huge achievement for this rising 21-year-old, it is the vision of one day competing in the Ryder Cup that shines brightest.
"It would mean everything to be part of the team," said Hovland, who has proven a standout in amateur team events down the years.
"I love college golf so much, even though professional golf is really cool, I still think about the times that we had in college. There's nothing better than winning a tournament as a team, and hopefully one day I'll be part of a winning Ryder Cup Team."
Witnessing what the European Solheim Cup team did last week at Gleneagles only added to those desires to one day represent the blue and yellow.
"That was unreal, it gave me goosebumps."
As for Wentworth itself this week, Hovland is remarkably impressed on first look.
"The course is in very good shape, and you know, you've got to think about it a little bit, clubs to hit off of tees and where to hit it into greens," he said.
"The greens are very subtle, and you can't really see in front of the fairway, so you have to know the green areas and you've got to do good preparation to play well out here."
