Months after a neck injury forced Viktor Hovland out of the Ryder Cup, he’s back in South Africa with a strategy that contradicts everything modern golf demands.

Hovland told Viaplay Golf Norge this week that he has spent the last couple of months working hard to ensure his neck doesn’t get worse. The plan ahead of the Nedbank Golf Challenge? Keep the driver in the bag—or at least limit its use. But there’s reason for optimism: practice sessions over the past two days have been “very, very good,” Hovland said, adding that it will be a matter of getting comfortable during the tournament.

It’s a delicate balance. Hovland sounds confident, but the course in South Africa demands something his body might not be ready to give.

Hovland’s neck issues first surfaced in June 2025 at the Trave

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