Viktor Hovland secured a $3.6 million payout for winning the 2023 Memorial Tournament. The next day, he was seen caddying for his best friend and former college teammate, Zach Bauchou, in the U.S Open Final Qualifying.
Shortly after winning the biggest tournament of his life, Viktor Hovland kept the Memorial Tournament celebrations short and went straight into caddying for former college teammate Zach Bauchou at the U.S. Open Final Qualifying Tournament.
Fresh off his victory at the Memorial Tournament, Hovland was spotted with his friend and former Oklahoma State roommate Zach Bauchou’s clubs. Hovland showed up with an untucked shirt, black shorts, and pair of beaten-up sneakers at the U.S Open final qualifier in Columbus, Ohio.
This is awesome
Less than 24 hours after winning $3.6 million at The Memorial Tournament, Viktor Hovland is caddying 36 holes at U.S. Open qualifying for his former college teammate.
(via @usopengolf) pic.twitter.com/DxvasGxLn3
— ESPN (@espn) June 5, 2023
Viktor Hovland Caddys for College Teammate After Winning 2023 Memorial Tournament
Just a few hours after celebrating the biggest win of his life, Hovland moved on to helping his friend secure one of the 11 spots available in next week’s U.S. Open.
The former Oklahoma teammate is one of 108 players trying to win a spot at next week’s national championship at the Los Angeles Country Club.
The U.S Open Final qualifier was hosted at the Brookside Golf and Country Club, which was about 15 minutes from Muirfield Village. The Columbus qualifier has been popular among non-exempt PGA Tour pros that failed to meet the qualifications for the upcoming U.S Open.
Last year, both Rickie Fowler and Matthew Wolff competed to secure their spot after falling short at the Memorial Tournament.
This year, Viktor Hovland showed up at the qualifiers but with a completely different agenda. After winning the Memorial Tournament, Hovland moved to the No.5 ranked golfer in the world and won’t need to worry about his own invitation.
Hovland’s Celebrations After Winning Memorial Tournament
Not only is Hovland a terrific golfer, but he’s also apparently a great friend too.
Less than 14 hours after winning the 2023 Memorial Tournament and $3.6 million, Hovland was back to business, caddying for Bauchou at the U.S. Open qualifier.
Just a week before, his friend, Bauchou floated the idea of having Hovland come caddy for him during the qualifier. Before even winning the tournament, Hovland had accepted to loop for his old buddy. While Hovland had no idea he would be playing all the way up to Sunday night, he wasn’t going to let this life-changing victory stop him from caddying for Bauchou.
Both Hovland and Bauchou won the 2018 NCAA Championship together. While Bauchou hasn’t found as much success, he has a chance to secure a spot for the U.S. Open in Columbus with some help from his old friend.