Viktor Hovland has booked his ticket to Rome as part of the European team for this year’s Ryder Cup through the World Points List.
The World Number Five joins Major-winning duo Rory McIlroy and Jon Rahm on Captain Luke Donald’s side ahead of the biennial contest which is being held for the first time in Italy since its creation in 1927.
Hovland, a winner of six events across the DP World Tour and PGA TOUR, is set for his second consecutive Ryder Cup appearance following automatic qualification.
Here, we profile how he made the team:
Viktor Hovland
Age: 25
Ryder Cup ranking: 3 (World Points)
Ryder Cup appearances: 1 (2021)
Ryder Cup record: 0-3-2
The Norwegian was the first from his country to represent Europe at the Ryder Cup when it was last held at Whistling Straights two years ago.
Hovland has since continued to enhance his reputation as one of the most consistent performers on the world stage and the 25-year-old will hope to play his part in ensuring Europe reclaim the trophy on home soil.
How did he qualify?
After recording three top fives including the BMW PGA Championship - the first event of the qualification process for Team Europe – Hovland finished last year by successfully defending his title at the Hero World Challenge.
Since then, he has continued to prove a consistent force not missing a cut in his 17 starts worldwide while he finished in a tie for third at The PLAYERS Championship.
But it is at the Major Championships where he has impressed the most this year with impressive performances to finish inside the top 20 in The Masters, U.S. Open and The 151st Open – as well as a runner-up finish at the US PGA Championship in May.
Ryder Cup experience
Hovland made his Ryder Cup debut on US soil in 2021 after qualifying via the World Points List.
Along with Spaniard Rahm, he was the only other player to feature in all five sessions for Team Europe under the captaincy of Pádraig Harrington.
After defeat alongside Paul Casey in Friday morning’s foursomes, the then 23-year-old partnered up with Tommy Fleetwood to record a half point against Justin Thomas and Patrick Cantlay later that day.
Defeats to Thomas and Spieth when partnered with Bernd Wiesberger and then Scottie Scheffler and Bryson DeChambeau when he resumed his fourball alliance with Fleetwood followed on Saturday –both of which were confirmed on the 17th hole.
He closed out his first taste of Ryder Cup experience with another half point against Collin Morikawa in the Sunday Singles, a result which took hosts USA to the 14.5 points required to reclaim the trophy.
