Viktor Hovland makes hole-in-one on TPC Sawgrass’ eighth hole

PONTE VEDRA BEACH, Fla. – TPC Sawgrass’ eighth hole isn’t as famous as its sibling on the course’s other nine, but it presents its own challenges.

There’s no water on No. 8, the longest par-3 on the course, but its scorecard yardage of 237 yards is 100 more than its more-famous sibling. Viktor Hovland played the hole to perfection Monday morning, making an ace there with a 4-iron on his second-to-last hole of the third round.

It was the eighth ace on No. 8 since 1983 and Hovland’s second on TOUR. He also made a 1 on Monterey Peninsula Country Club’s 14th hole in the second round of the 2020 AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am.

The hole-in-one was Hovland’s second eagle on that side, as well. He also eagled the par-5 second, making a 22-foot for eagle on his final hole of Sunday. He made two eagles and seven pars on TPC Sawgrass’ front nine, his final nine of the round, to shoot 68 and get to 4 under par.

“I've been playing really well the whole week. I just haven't really been able to capitalize on any putts,” said Hovland. “Maybe if I get a few putts going early and maybe start blowing in the afternoon and gets a little shaky, then maybe, but got a lot of work to do.”

He hit 17 greens in the third round after hitting 14 in each of the first two rounds. He’s gained more than four strokes with his approach play while losing more than four strokes on the greens.

Hovland’s hole-in-one came a day after his Ryder Cup teammates, Shane Lowry, made an ace on TPC Sawgrass’ most famous hole. Both 1s occurred in the third round, however, which began Sunday afternoon after weather delays throughout the week. This is the fifth time since 1983 that there have been multiple holes-in-one in one round at THE PLAYERS.