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Hovland has made an auspicious debut on the PGA Tour, coming within a couple of shots of securing his Tour card after only 10 events, making 8 cuts and earning just under $650,000. His swing is unconventional, but the pattern he is utilizing is becoming more prevalent with each class of college players trying to make it on Tour. His bowed left wrist and the high left arm at the top keeps the arms well out in front of the body while his hips and pelvis perform in a classic fashion that adds depth in transition and stays deep through the shot. His posture at address is totally relaxed with no sharp angles, and it is not surprising that he moves his upper body forward toward the ball during the entire swing. Again, the key here is lower body depth with an obvious “crunch” move in transition where the pelvis adds anterior tilt and makes even more room for the right arm in the forward swing. Hovland’s hands come in somewhat higher than his original shaft plane, but that is to be expected as his right arm adducts more horizontally with his right shoulder externally rotated (the essence of the “hands out” path in transition). His drive/hold release action combined with his high to low hand path in the release area are perfect for a consistent fade, and the full release of the left side in the follow through indicates that there is no hold on going on at impact. It’s a cool technique and it will be fun to watch him make his way into the top players in the world.
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