The very special prize is specially made for Hovland.
But first we have to tell about Karsten Solheim.
The relatively unknown Norwegian was the world’s richest Norwegian, and for a while in Forbes magazine’s top 100 list of the world’s richest people.
In 1996, his personal fortune was estimated at NOK 2.2 billion.
– PING: Karsten Solheim.
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Karsten was born in Austrheim in Nordhordland in 1911. He later moved with his family to the United States. Karsten trained as an engineer and started at General Electric.
Golf amateur
As a 42-year-old, he started playing golf, but struggled to putt. In the garage at home in Phoenix, Arizona, he developed what has since been called one of golf’s greatest inventions and innovations.
– PUTTING: Viktor Hovland spends a lot of time improving his putting skills. Photo: Daniel Sannum Lauten
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The revolutionary putter.
It was common to attach the shaft to the heel of the club blade, but Karsten attached it in the middle.
This was the start of a golf club branded Ping, and a vault filled with golf clubs in gold.
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PRESIDENT MEETING: Karsten Solheim met President Ronald Reagan in 1988
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Karsten Solheim (88) died in 2000.
– Grandfather was very proud to be Norwegian, says John K. Solheim to TV 2, who today leads the company his grandfather started in the garage in the 60’s.
Solheim himself has visited Norway many times, but only in the summer.
Karsten Solheim is also the founder of the Solheim Cup. Suzann Pettersen was earlier this year named captain in the prestigious tournament between Europe and the USA.
Former Prime Minister Erna Solberg’s gift to former President Donald Trump when she visited the White House in 2018 was the golf club «Bergen».
– GIFT: This “Bergen” putter was given to Trump by Solberg. Photo: David Moir / AP
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Gold invention
– In the early 70’s, Karsten decided that all the players who won a tournament with his Ping golf club would get an identical copy in gold, with player name, tournament and date engraved. The player gets one copy, and we keep one here in the vault in Phoenix, says Solheim.
Since then, more than 3,000 gold golf clubs have been made.
Viktor Hovland has so far won five tournaments that qualify for a gold putter.
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-Viktor has two or three gold putters for good that he has not been able to pick up from us yet, says John K. Solheim.
Hovland, who at the time of writing is ranked as the world’s ninth best golfer, remembers his visit to the golden vault as a highlight.
– Very cool! There’s an incredible amount of history that company. It is cool to represent a company that is Norwegian, says Viktor Hovland to TV 2.
Love for life
At the golf club manufacturer’s headquarters, they expect great things from Hovland.
Of all our golfers, it is Viktor we have the highest expectations of. He has everything to be able to succeed. He is sensible, has a good golf swing and has a work ethic to cope with adversity, says Solheim.
He admits that it is especially nice to have a Norwegian top player in the stable.
– He is loved all over the world. That we also have the story of our Norwegian family and that one of the world’s best players, is Norwegian, uses our equipment, is fantastic.
The superlatives sit loosely with Karsten Solheim’s grandson.
– His “love for life” demeanor, and that he is always happy and cheerful on the golf course, makes Viktor a fantastic ambassador for us.
– If you look around me now, there is not much that reminds me of Norway.
TV 2 met Hovland on the Caribbean island of the Bahamas before Christmas. The place the Norwegian took his fifth professional tournament victory in his career.
– A lot of what I do is very unorthodox. So I feel almost a little more patriotic by collaborating with Solheim and Ping, says Viktor Hovland.
But Hovland must still dream of the most exclusive gold putter.
– Players who win a major tournament get a putter, or another club that was crucial to the victory, made of pure gold throughout, says Solheim.
He looks forward to opening the golden vault for Viktor Hovland again.
