Viktor Hovland pulls out of Ryder Cup singles through injury

Viktor Hovland has been forced to pull out of Sunday’s singles session at the Ryder Cup through injury.

The Norwegian aggravated a neck problem during Saturday’s morning foursomes at Bethpage Black and withdrew from the afternoon fourballs to undergo treatment.

His absence means his singles match against Harris English will be halved, making the overall score 12-5 in Europe’s favour before the final session begins.

Europe will now need only two-and-a-half points from the remaining 11 singles matches to secure outright victory over the United States.

Hovland said in a statement: “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.

“Not being able to do so is pretty heartbreaking. I will be backing my team as hard as I can and rooting them on.”

Hovland, playing alongside Robert MacIntyre, was beaten in Friday’s foursomes by Xander Schauffele and Patrick Cantlay but the pair bounced back to beat Russell Henley and Scottie Scheffler on Saturday.

However, it was during that match he felt pain in his neck and withdrew from the fourballs, having initially been named to take on Cantlay and Sam Burns with Matt Fitzpatrick. His place was taken by Tyrrell Hatton.

He went to hospital for an MRI scan and treatment but remained in discomfort on Sunday and could not move his neck,

Dr Andrew Murray, Ryder Cup Europe’s chief medical officer, said: “This morning Viktor received ongoing treatment but unfortunately he is not able to rotate or flex his neck to one side making playing the singles impossible.”