Viktor Hovland is back in the world’s top ten – and earning himself a new nickname.
Published: 05.12.22, at 13.03
The dust had settled after the very dramatic ending of yesterday’s World of Heroes Challenge. It more or less becomes one a “match play” match between Viktor Hovland and Scottie Schefflerand everything was decided on the last hole.
As well as taking home a trophy and a million dollars, Viktor Hovland is once again ranked as one of the world’s best golfers. After first place, the Norwegian earned enough points to get past Tony Finau, Collin Morikawa and Matt Fitzpatrick, and in doing so move from twelfth to ninth in the world.
Hovland’s best record is third place which he held from January 30 to March 27 earlier this year. It’s been 106 days since he was last ranked in the top ten.
Had Scottie Scheffler won the tournament, she would have overtaken first place from Hovland’s Ryder Cup partner Rory McIlroy.
New nickname
Along with all the tributes Hovland has received in the last few hours, a new nickname has also emerged. Renowned golf journalist Dana Rapaport published a tweet with hilarious observations after the Norwegian’s victory became a fact:
Viktor Hovland has 5 wins on the PGA Tour/Hero.
—’20 Puerto Rico Opens in Grand Reserve resort
—’21 Mayakoba Classic at Mayakoba in Mexico
—’21 WWT Championship in Mayakoba
—’21, ’22 Hero World Challenge at Albany in the BahamasResort King is from Norway and lives in Oklahoma.
— Dan Rapaport (@Daniel_Rapaport) December 4, 2022
All of Hovland’s wins on the PGA Tour have come on so-called “resort courses” in warm regions (Mexico, Bahamas, and Puerto Rico journ.anm.). So it’s natural to get a new nickname “The Resort King”. Elsewhere, the epithet “king of tropical paradise » also appeared.
The joke seems to be enjoyed by the protagonist himself when he includes the pun in the caption of the tiger trophy.
That’s not to say that all wins come on such a course. His first European Tour win at the BMW International Open came in Munich, this year’s Dubai Dessert Classic win of course came in Dubai, as well as plenty of tournament wins at the junior and collegiate levels.
This weekend’s Hero World Challenge marked the end of a tournament year for the Ekeberg man. What will be the official start of the new year is still uncertain, but you can definitely confirm that she will defend her title in Dubai.
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