Alright, so I’ve been getting a lot of questions lately about what’s in Viktor Hovland’s bag, especially after he nailed that FedEx Cup title. So, I did some digging and put together what I found. Here’s the scoop, straight from a guy who spends way too much time watching golf and tinkering with gear.
Driver situation
First off, I looked at his driver. This is what sets the stage for his game, right? From what I gathered, Viktor’s been using the Ping G425 LST. I grabbed one from the shop and spent a weekend trying to see what makes it tick.
- Hit the range: I took it to the driving range, hit about a hundred balls. The feel is solid, and it really does a number on reducing spin.
- Played a round: Then I played 18 holes with it. On the course, it was pretty forgiving even when I didn’t quite catch it in the sweet spot.
Fairway wood
Next up, I got curious about his fairway woods. Apparently, he’s got a Ping G430 Max 7-wood in there. Now, I didn’t have one of those lying around, but I’ve hit the G430 Max driver before, so I had some idea.
- Compared notes: I chatted with a buddy who has the 7-wood. He let me hit a few with it. It’s got a great launch, which probably helps Viktor get that extra bit of air and control on longer shots.
- Simulated some shots: I used a simulator to model some scenarios where a 7-wood would come into play. It’s all about that smooth transition from the tee box to those longer approaches, I figured.
Hybrid talk
And there’s the hybrid, the Ping G425. I’ve actually used this one a bit myself, so I felt pretty confident talking about it.
- Tested it out: I’ve used it in various lies, rough, fairway, even off the tee on shorter par 3s. It’s versatile, which I guess is why Viktor likes it.
- Analyzed my rounds: I went over my stats from rounds where I used the G425 hybrid a lot. It’s consistent, which in my book is one of the most important things for a club.
Putting it all together
So, after all this, I sat down and thought about how all these clubs might work together in a pro’s bag like Viktor’s. I realized it’s not just about having the “best” clubs. It’s about how they fit your game, your swing, your strategy. I even drew up a little diagram of how I think his bag is optimized, based on my little experiments and what I’ve seen from him in tournaments.
- Strategized on paper: I mapped out different scenarios on the course where each club would be the go-to. It got me thinking about course management, something I usually don’t pay enough attention to.
- Reflected on my game: I started thinking about my own bag and where I could make adjustments. Maybe I don’t need the latest driver, but a different hybrid could help, or perhaps I should really work on my fairway wood game.
This whole deep dive into Viktor’s setup was kind of an eye-opener. It’s cool to see what the pros are using, but it’s even more interesting to try and understand why. And hey, it got me out on the course more, trying new things, and thinking more critically about my own gear. Hope this little rundown helps some of you guys out there. Hit ’em straight!
