Woods, once again playing the role of Heavyweight in Chief, had pulled world No. He arrived at this painful crossroads after suffering a serious neck injury. Then came an unexpected health crisis for Hovland, who is from Norway, which left him unable to compete at full strength.
The drama deepened after Hovland got an MRI at a Manhattan hospital late Saturday night. The tests showed the re-emergence of a previous injury, a disk bulge in his neck. He woke up on Sunday morning with very little motion, not able to turn his head or bend his neck to the right at all.
After some time attempting to warm up back at the course, Hovland understood that his condition made competing in singles unfeasible. He had been dealing with neck pain for a few months. That uneasiness grew during the first round of matches on Saturday morning when he paired with Matt Fitzpatrick to battle Sam Burns and Patrick Cantlay in foursomes.
Hovland was set to play in the anchor match at 2:03 p.m. ET but had to step back shortly before his tee time. Tyrrell Hatton replaced him in the lineup. This last-minute change would prove to have a huge impact on the U.S. team. Captain Keegan Bradley had already written Harris English’s name to sit out Sunday singles.
“There is nothing more I would like to do than be out there representing Team Europe and trying to help them win the Ryder Cup today,”
- Viktor Hovland
Dr. Andrew Murray, who was consulted on Hovland’s injury to give medical context, emphasized the severity of the injury.
“An MRI was arranged following liaison between Team Europe and PGA of America on-site medical team, which confirmed a flare up of a previous injury — a disk bulge in his neck by a medical imaging specialist,”
- Dr. Andrew Murray
The defending champs have suffered a notable blow with the withdrawal mark of Hovland’s for Team Europe as they’ve look to recapture the Ryder Cup title. It will be a tough test for the team moving forward into the bulk of the season, though. They’ll be doing so without one of their most important players.
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