Hovland lifted by local fans in Oklahoma

DP World Tour Rankings in Partnership with Rolex leader Viktor Hovland revealed he was given a lift by the local crowds as he carded an opening 70 at the 2022 US PGA Championship.

The Norwegian spent his collegiate career at Oklahoma State University and the local Pokes fans were happy to see him teeing it up at Southern Hills Country Club.

"It was a lot of fun," he said. "Hearing a lot of 'Go Pokes' and 'Go Viktor' and a lot of good support out there, so that was fun.

"I was out of position a couple of times and instead of maybe letting that linger with the mood a little bit, when you hear people are rooting for you, it's kind of easy to snap out and refocus.

"It's been fun so far."

Hovland twinned a bogey and a birdie while also making 16 pars in his level-par effort, and believed he could have gone lower had he got the putter going.

"I would have liked to have made a couple more birdie putts," he said. "Certainly I had a few good looks that I didn't take advantage of but felt like I did a lot of good stuff today.

"I think my game is going in the right direction so hopefully I can play more along the same lines as I did today and just make a couple of key putts."