OPEN DE FRANCE

September 23, 2026

Viktor Hovland

Le Golf National

Quick Quotes

Q. Viktor, welcome to France. First time playing the Open de France. What have you heard about the tournament, maybe, and what have you seen about the course already that you like?

VIKTOR HOVLAND: Yeah, I mean, I've already been here in '24, the Olympics, and I was very impressed by the golf course. I think, yeah, it's probably one of the best courses I've played in Europe, especially in a tournament.

From what I've heard, because of where it is kind of in the season, I feel like I was expecting worse weather. In the mornings it's certainly a little cold, but it's beautiful in the middle of the day.

Because I think this late in the year, or maybe it's been even later in the past, I've heard some stories about what guys have been hitting into No. 1, for example, hitting driver off the tee and still having like a 6-iron in there, which is -- yeah, makes this place a lot different.

But I've heard good things about it. It's a tough test.

Q. You mentioned the Olympics here in 2026. What are your memories of that? It's a pretty memorable week, I would say.

VIKTOR HOVLAND: Yeah, the golf wasn't very memorable, but I remember just didn't really know what to expect, playing in the Olympics, especially here in France. I played in Tokyo, but there weren't any people allowed there.

So I wasn't sure what to expect, how many people came out. And I think almost 40,000 people showed up every day.

So the atmosphere felt like a major. It was really cool to just be out here, especially at this golf course where it's really well framed around the greens. It definitely gave it kind of an amphitheater kind of atmosphere, from that standpoint.

And obviously staying in the Olympic Village and seeing other athletes and stuff, it's a cool thing to be a part of.

Q. Speaking of the Ryder Cup, this place is synonymous with 2018 and the thumping Europe gave to America. I think you were 21 years old at that time. What were your memories as a fan of that week, if you can remember?

VIKTOR HOVLAND: I honestly don't remember where I was. I think I might have been in the States. I was still in college at the time. And obviously rooting for Europe, you're outnumbered over in the United States.

But now I remember obviously Europe closing it out, and I think the most memorable one -- because I think I tuned in a little bit late, and Alex Noren made that big putt on the last and gave a good celebration.

So, yeah, just interesting to kind of see how that -- how the course played at that time as well, looking very tough, very narrow and super juicy, rough off the tee.

So, yeah, I mean, it's a great golf course and a great venue to have big tournaments on.

Q. Coming up to recent times in the Ryder Cup, you went for a little catch-up with Team Europe. Tell us what that experience was like with all the members of the possible team that you might have in a year's time?

VIKTOR HOVLAND: Yeah, I mean, we're a year out, but it's always a good time kind of getting everyone together and hang out and getting in that team spirit, team vibe already.

Obviously seeing the golf course that they're going to be playing at and how it's going to work for match play, what kind of strategy choices you can make out there. It's a super impressive place, and I think it's going to be a great host for a Ryder Cup.

So I think we're all looking forward to teeing it up there.

Q. Can you reveal who you played with over the few days there?

VIKTOR HOVLAND: Yeah, we had a team match, it was me and Kristoffer Reitan versus Ludvig and Alex Noren. So had a good match. The Norwegians pulled the shortest straw. But it's all right.

Q. Wentworth last week, top 30 there. How do you assess your game at the moment?

VIKTOR HOVLAND: Man, it was rough last week. It really was. Especially with the wind at certain places, some of these tee shots I was very uncomfortable on.

Honestly, very happy with how I was able to kind of make the cut and shoot under-par every single day, because I made some really nice up-and-downs. I've been putting quite well the last couple months, and I continued to putt well last week.

So I'd say from around the greens and on the greens, I was very happy with the game. But I'm still struggling a little bit to find sort of consistency tee-to-green. And that's where kind of all the focus is right now.

Q. Coming back to this week, the last four holes I would say are some of the toughest stretch on the DP World Tour for you. What are the demands of those last four holes in general?

VIKTOR HOVLAND: Yeah, I mean, it's -- you got to put yourself in positions over here. 15 now they lengthened, and I think I hit 3-wood today. Yesterday was into the wind, so I hit driver and still had like an 8-iron in to front-ish pin. Especially if you start tucking the pins on the right and putting it back there, it's a very tough hole.

16 is a good par-3.

17 is a beast of a hole.

And 18 is obviously not only a tough tee shot, but a second shot is very demanding.

So it's just one of those -- you know, it's fair. It's right there in front of you. But if you step up there and hit a bad shot and don't know where the ball is going, you're going to get punished. You're going to have to either lay up or you decide to go for it, hit in the water, and, yeah, now you're paying the price.

So it's just a very good separator, this course. If you're playing well, you can shoot well; if you're struggling, it's going to kick your ass. So it's -- yeah, it's just one of those good golf courses.