The Open Championship star who's won £26million speaks out about how he spends his money

Viktor Hovland showed his down-to-earth nature as he explained how he spends his golf earnings. The world No. 11 is yet to win a major, a surprising record which he's attempting to rectify at The Open this week.

But Hovland, 27, has still reaped the financial rewards since turning pro in 2019. He's banked £26,544,888 ($35,674,298) from the PGA Touralone, placing him 47th on their all-time money list.

While it could be easy to let that sum go to his head, the Norwegian doesn't splash the cash on extravagant purchases. In fact, he had the crowd at Royal Portrush chuckling as he named some of his biggest buys on stage for The R&A's .

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Asked to reveal his first significant purchase after a win, Hovland replied: "I haven't spent that much money on just fun things. Like a couple of weeks ago, for example, I was on a boys' trip in Marbella, so I can try to spend money on things that are fun, like activities.

"But in terms of things, there's not that many things to buy. I bought a nice grill to grill some steak. And I bought a Ninja blender, it cuts it up pretty nicely. So just things like that."

While many of his counterparts have jumped ship to LIV Golf to cash in on the Saudi riches on offer there, Hovland isn't motivated by money. After winning the FedEx Cup in 2023, which came with a staggering £14.4m ($18m) pay cheque that's on top of his PGA winnings, he insisted he'd be perfectly happy with just enough to live a comfortable life.

"Obviously, it's a lot of cash you're playing for. I mean, it's in the back of your mind," he admitted. "But I live in Stillwater, Oklahoma. Money goes long ways there. It's not like I'm spending money out the wazoo every week.

"I don't need a lot to be happy. I don't need a lot to live within my means. So obviously it's nice for my family to have that protection and my, you know, eventual kids, that I'll have in the future.

"It's nice to have that, but it's not something that drives me, it's not something that gives me meaning. I find meaning in other places. But obviously with how society works, money is something you need."

Hovland's total career earnings are closer to the £50m mark, and winning The Open would secure him another £2.3m. But more important for him would be getting the proverbial monkey off his back by ending his wait for a major.

He's secured top 10 finishes in all four of golf's top tournaments, coming closest to victory at the 2023 PGA Championship when he finished two shots behind winner Brooks Koepka in a tie for second with Scottie Scheffler.

He ended an 18-month winless run at the Valspar Championship in March. But he found himself down the leaderboard at Portrush after an opening round of two over par, despite an eagle at the second.