Just a few years ago, it seemed almost unthinkable. Viktor Hovland was not only Norway's best golfer – he was one of the world's biggest names in the sport. He won the FedEx Cup, took seven PGA victories and established himself at the top of the world.
Now another Norwegian has passed him.
After winning the PGA Tour's prestigious Truist Championship, Kristoffer Reitan now ranked ahead of Hovland in the world rankings. Reitan moved up to 25th place, while Hovland fell to 27th place.
It is one of the biggest surprises in Norwegian golf in many years.
Stay calm when the pressure comes
The most impressive thing about Kristoffer Reitan's victory was perhaps not the birdies - but the way he handled the adversity.
In the final round, the Norwegian had a tough time early on with bogeys on both holes 5 and 6. In a tournament of this size, it could easily have been the start of the collapse.
Instead, Reitan responded like an experienced major player.
He hit back immediately with a birdie on hole 7, and as the pressure mounted towards the end he kept his cool as several of his competitors started to make mistakes. Birdies on holes 14 and 15 gave him back the initiative, before he finished with a series of solid and controlled pars.
While the players around him took risks and lost strokes, Reitan chose patience and control.
That was perhaps precisely where the victory was decided.
The performance was all the more impressive because it came under immense pressure. This was not an easy victory where everything flowed from start to finish. Reitan had to dig deep, pull himself together and brave the nerves on one of the sport's biggest stages.
It is often victories like these that say the most about how far a player has actually come.
From doubt to the world elite
What makes Kristoffer Reitan's story extra special is how close he actually came to disappearing from top golf.
After several difficult seasons, the Norwegian lost both his flow and his self-confidence. The results failed to materialize, his tour card disappeared, and in the golf community he was eventually referred to as a talent who never fully realized his potential.
At one point, Reitan also took a step back from his pursuit. He needed distance from golf after a period of frustration and adversity. Several people around the sport have said that he was unsure whether he even wanted to continue his pursuit of the top.
This makes the contrast with the current situation enormous.
Because while Viktor Hovland established himself as one of the world's biggest stars, Reitan had to start over. He gradually built himself up again via smaller tournaments and the Challenge Tour, far away from the limelight on the PGA Tour.
Then came the turning point.
Over the past two seasons, Reitan has taken steps few thought possible:
- victory on the Challenge Tour
- breakthrough on the DP World Tour
- PGA Tour Card
- Masters place
- and now victory on the PGA Tour
The reward also came in the world rankings. After winning the Truist Championship, Reitan is now ranked number 25 in the world – two places ahead of Viktor Hovland.
Just a few years ago, that would have sounded like an impossible headline.
Hovland is still the most deserving
Although Reitan is now ranked highest by Norwegians, it is important to put the situation in perspective.
Hovland is still by far the most accomplished Norwegian golfer of all time. He has:
- seven PGA wins
- FedEx Cup title
- several years at the top of the world
- top-3 position in the world rankings
Reitan has only just begun to establish itself at the top level.
Still, the world ranking says a lot about the current form curve. Hovland has had a more uneven period recently, while Reitan has been one of the hottest players on both the DP World Tour and the PGA Tour.
A historic moment for Norwegian golf
Perhaps the most remarkable thing is that Norway suddenly has two players at the top of the world at the same time.
A few years ago, Norwegian men's golf was almost exclusively about Viktor Hovland. Now, suddenly, there's a new Norwegian star challenging him – and who is actually ranked higher right now.
Very few people thought it would happen so quickly. Maybe no one.
Or maybe we were in 90minutefamily because just read what we wrote before this weekend's round here!
We were clearly on the trail of this, and a quote from the analysis this weekend shows that we perhaps predicted this earlier than anyone else in the golf world:
This is also an incredibly exciting period for Norwegian golf. Reitan has already secured a place in next week's PGA Championship, and the question of who is actually Norway's best golfer right now is starting to get really interesting.
Regardless, we think that Kristoffer Reitan's top 20 appears to be a very exciting bet this week. The form is strong, the confidence seems high, and the odds simply feel too good to ignore.
By the way, we also hit the analysis well, and 4 out of 5 bets ended up in. At a signature tournament like this, we are very proud to pick two top 10 players, and two top 20 players on the odds.
