Right now, the Oakmont Country Club is letting nothing past it. After two days of play at the Pennsylvania Course, the cut line stands at a whopping 7 over par! In fact, amongst all the players who took part in the major championship, only three players have managed a total score that is below par after the action on Friday. Sam Burns currently leads the pack with a 3-under-par score, followed closely by JJ Spaun, who is one stroke behind.

Behind them is the unassuming Norwegian, Viktor Hovland, who shot an impressive 2 under par on day 2 to move to solo third on the leaderboard. As he aims to claim his first major title at the US Open, there will be a few faces hoping he can clinch another milestone in his already storied but young career. Those faces will be his loving family, that has constantly provided him with support. Let’s take a look at his support system.

The Hovland family

Hovland was born to Harald and Gavlina Hovland on 18 September 1997, in the capital city of Oslo in Norway. His father was an engineer by profession and had routinely traveled to the United States for work.  “My mom and dad are pretty happy people. … Norway, is a pretty happy country“,  Hovland stated back in 2022. Harald Hovland took up golf as a means to spend some time away from his hectic work schedule. During one such trip to the United States, Harald brought back golf clubs he bought from St. Louis for his young son. Viktor Hovland was 11 then, and that was his proper introduction to the game.

The seven-time PGA Tour winner never turned back after that occasion, practicing at a nearby indoor driving range incessantly. The growth of Hovland into the golfer he is today is largely due to the presence of two supportive parents. Galina Hovland is also heavily involved in her son’s golfing career, routinely traveling with him to several of his games. In fact, during one such occasion, she was involved in some impactful decisions as well.

Viktor Hovland’s mother calls out an infraction on the course

During the PLAYERS Championship in 2021, Hovland inadvertently broke Rule 14.7 while playing at the 15th hole. The Norwegian moved his ball marker one putter head to avoid fellow golfer Justin Thomas’s line. Hovland replaced his ball marker in the wrong place after, leading to the infraction.  The rule states that, “The score with the ball played from a wrong place counts, and the player gets the general penalty under Rule 14.7 (which means that two penalty strokes are added to the score with that ball).”

This was first pointed out to him by his mother, and Hovland duly self-reported the mistake, which eventually led him to lose two crucial strokes. The right way to play, courtesy of his mother! The Norwegian golfer did end up missing the cut at the TPC Sawgrass by two strokes. How unfortunate! But the showing of true sportsmanship proved to be the right move, as Hovland went on to win five more times on the PGA Tour after that incident.

Can he use some of those good vibes and claim a much-needed victory at Oakmont Country Club as well?