Viktor Hovland returned to the winner's circle at the Valspar Championship.
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Golf is a weird game. It wasn’t so long ago, roughly 18 months, that Viktor Hovland was at the pinnacle of the golf world.
He was coming off a FedEx Cup win, ranked No. 3 in the world and carded an impressive 3-1-1 Ryder Cup performance at Marco Simone. He had also entered the “best in the world” debate. He was feared, admired and on everyone’s mind.
In 2024, the greatness stalled. Some coaching swaps, swing changes and an overall downturn in results dropped him to No. 19 in the world, where he started this week at the 2025 Valspar Championship.
There hadn’t been any signs of improvement early this season. Hovland entered the Valspar after missing three consecutive cuts. But again, golf is a weird game,m and Hovland found something this week to beat Justin Thomas by one shot and claim his seventh-career PGA Tour title.
His stubborn performance while winning at the insanely challenging Copperhead course reminded us all that Vik is still here, and all he needed was to get into the fight once again. Winning at the Tour level is damn near impossible, and for someone like Hovland, perhaps tasting victory in tough conditions was all he needed to get back to where we all expect him to be.
His bag is an interesting one. Most of it is from two-to-three years ago, and as I learned in watching him work with Ping Tour rep Kenton Oates, Hovland is specific about what lands in the bag. If something is working, it stays until it breaks or something new comes along, which is miles better. Hovland is a “hard switcher,” and I love him for it.
3-Wood:TaylorMade SIM (Small Head) at 16.5@17 Shaft: Fujikura Ventus Blue 7X (Tipped 1.5) 43.25 inches EOG, D3.5
Utility: Titleist U505 (3) Shaft: Graphite Design Tour AD DI HY 85X (39 EOG)
Titleist U505 Custom Driving Iron
An extremely versatile, high-launching utility iron that now looks and feels dramatically better.
U•505 lets you reclaim your long iron game. Drawing on Tour input, the refined design provides the high, explosive launch you expect from a utility, now with a remarkably solid feel and sound.
U•505 is the ultimate, high-launching utility. A new, cleaner design creates more confidence at address, while the refined Max Impact Technology, reengineered chassis and new Variable Bounce Sole all improve the feel and overall performance. It all adds up to a versatile utility that plays like an iron.
TOUR-VALIDATED LOOKS
With a shorter blade and shallow face, U•505 sets up the way Tour Pros feel a utility should. Now with an even cleaner design, there is nothing to distract you from hitting the exact shot and shape your playing position demands.
ENHANCED FEEL
With distance as a priority for a utility, engineering feel becomes a unique challenge. For U•505, Titleist engineers use a refined Max Impact Technology with added dampening in the polymer muscle badge to guide the frequencies created at impact into the ideal player range.
IMPROVED OFF-CENTER ACCURACY
U•505 features a more stable, reengineered chassis and a lower CG position to help maintain speed and stability on strikes made away from center. The new single taper face improves performance towards the heel for tighter overall distance dispersion.
EFFORTLESS TURF INTERACTION
Working with Tour Pros and the grind experts at Vokey Design, our engineers were able to further improve our Variable Bounce Sole by softening the trailing edge to allow the club to flow faster through the turf, even after contact. A scoring iron refinement for one of the longest clubs in your bag.
Irons: (4-PW)Ping I210 (.25 short IE 37.75 5-iron)
Ping i230 Custom Irons
Already a winner on Tour, the players-style i230 iron delivers consistent and predictable distance control with tighter dispersion for hitting precise yardages. An activated elastomer insert creates discretionary weight to lower the CG for more distance while enhancing feel and sound in conjunction with a multi-material badge. A more rounded lead edge ensures smooth turf interaction for clean strikes and MicroMax grooves produce consistent performance from wet and dry grass.
PERFORMANCE PACKED. TOUR PROVEN.
More distance and control.
Increased MOI, tighter dispersion.
Elevated impact experience
All-weather control
MICROMAX™ GROOVES
Fully machined face and grooves
Consistent launch and spin in long irons
Short-iron control and spin retent ion in wet conditions
With the addition of two grinds and new lofts, the tour-style s159 wedges are available in 25 loft/grind combinations to match a wedge to your playing conditions and technique while ensuring a properly gapped set. Extensive testing with top PING tour players helped create wedges that will appeal to golfers of all abilities. The new WebFit Wedge app provides a quick and easy way to determine the s159 grinds that best fit your game.
Tour-Proven Design
The tour-inspired 8620 carbon steel head features a soft feel and clean shape with a straighter lead edge for improved results on full shots. Two performance-enhancing finishes (Hybropearl 2.0 Chrome and Midnight) are available in all loft/grind combinations.
More Grooves. More Spin.
Wheel-cut grooves are precision-milled to varying dimensions, depending on loft. The 46-to-52-degree wedges are milled to maximize groove volume for greater control on full shots. The 54-to-62-degree options feature more tightly spaced MicroMax grooves to impart more spin, especially around the greens.
This mid-mallet, preferred design of FedExCup champ Viktor Hovland, is a face-balanced, straight-stroke-type model distinguished by a wide top rail and ball-width cavity created by its clean heel-and-toe ballasts. Now available in a Patina finish with a smooth face milling for firmer feel. This putter also comes with a limited edition black/orange headcover and grip.
Quality and precision
A solid block of forged, 303 stainless steel requires more than four hours of milling time; precisely shaping every surface and radius to achieve the high quality and premium look expected in a precision-milled putter.
Johnny currently serves as the Director of Equipment at Golf.com, contributing to platforms like Fully Equipped Golf. Prior to this role, he was the Content Marketing Manager at Callaway Golf, where he led “Callaway Golf’s World of Wunder,” a platform dedicated to in-depth golf equipment content. Before joining Callaway, he was the Director of Original Content and host of “The Gear Dive” podcast at GolfWRX.com. Beyond his professional endeavors, Johnny is an avid golfer with a deep passion for the game, having played since his youth in Seattle, Washington.
