ARNOLD PALMER INVITATIONAL

March 4, 2023

Viktor Hovland

Bay Hill Club and Lodge

Quick Quotes

Q. What did you say you did best today in your round of 66?

VIKTOR HOVLAND: Combination of just driving it really well. I didn't miss a lot of fairways. I think I only missed one green today, or two with 18 there, but it was just off the green. So it was just really, really solid. I wasn't really close to making a bogey the whole day.

Q. You seem to score in some pretty bad conditions. Maybe people are make being too much of a big deal about the wind. But how would you characterize the conditions this week to what you've seen in the past?

VIKTOR HOVLAND: No, I've always thought that Bay Hill is a -- I think it's a really good golf course. The first two days usually plays really, really well. Then I think they kind of go overboard on the weekend. But this week I think they have done a really good job of keeping the greens not too slick. There's still some friction on the greens. There's still some greenness to 'em. If you hit good shots, you can get the ball to stop. But it's definitely not easy.

The only thing I would have to complain about is just the bunkers. There's just too much sand in it. I was lucky enough to not hit in the bunker today, but the first two days I had a couple of plugged lies. I think I've had five this tournament. So that's about the only thing I can say.

Q. You look at the leaderboard, it's a lot of the same players. You, Terrell, Rory. Why do you think that is? Corey Conners. Why do you think these guys play well year after year here?

VIKTOR HOVLAND: I can only speculate, but I feel like this golf course kind of has a maybe a little European feel to it with the wind. You got some doglegs and crosswinds. It's not always just about kind of bomb and gouge it. If you can kind of shape a few shots off the tee and hit a lot of fairways, with how firm it is, the ball's going to roll a long way. So precision is a big deal out here.

Q. A lot of long irons too?

VIKTOR HOVLAND: That too. I actually had a lot of wedges today after hitting a lot of drivers in the fairway. Because the ball went so far, I had a lot of wedges. But at the same time the par-3s, into par-5s, you're going to have to hit some good long irons.

Q. (No Microphone.)

VIKTOR HOVLAND: Well, I wouldn't say that it's been the case the last seven, eight months. But when I hit the ball my best I think I can separate myself. In these conditions, even if it gets really tough I can still hit the fairways. I can still hit the greens. If I make some putts I can shoot a low score.

Q. You contended last year also and it was windy last year. And then the last round kind of blew everybody to smithereens. What is your secret for doing well in the wind?

VIKTOR HOVLAND: I just got to keep doing what I've been doing. I've been hitting a lot of fairways and greens. Last year was -- I didn't quite hit it as good as I did earlier in the week. But even then I still feel like I should have won last year if I had a half decent short game last year. I still hit it good enough to play a little bit better, but I feel like this year I'm stroking it well. My speed on the greens is not quite where it should be. I'm leaving a lot of putts short. But I really do feel like my short game technique has gotten a lot better, even though it hasn't really shown that this week. But especially -- I mean, if I could just keep hitting the ball like I've been doing, I should be pretty good.

Q. What did you do to improve it?

VIKTOR HOVLAND: The short game? Just been trying to, essentially trying to get my body to be more in front of the ball. My pelvis and body has almost been moving away from the target. And it doesn't matter what you do with the hands, it's all timing if your low point's behind the golf ball. So just been trying to get more left.

Q. What's the plan for this? How do you go about getting ready for tomorrow?

VIKTOR HOVLAND: Just going to get some rest. It's already been a long week. It's hot, sweaty, using a lot of mental energy. Grinding on every single hole out there. Even though I played well today, it's still draining. So just going to get some rest.

Q. The wind is supposed to lay down a little bit.

VIKTOR HOVLAND: Okay. I'll believe it when I see it. (Laughing.)

Q. What do you think it will take to win?

VIKTOR HOVLAND: I don't know. There's still a lot of guys there. Still a lot of guys left. So depends what they finish up today and depends how the conditions are tomorrow. Can't really say.