In this study, a novel series of water-soluble hydrophobically modified poly(vinyl alcohol) (PVA) is prepared by chemical modification of PVA, with the objective of investigating the polymer’s theological behavior for enhanced oil recovery applications. The solution viscosity of the polymer obtained is studied with respect to the polymer concentration, temperature, salinity, polymer modification, aging, shear rate, and polymer molecular weight. The solution viscosity of the PVA is greatly enhanced by the modification. The modified PVA exhibits a relatively high salt tolerance, typical of nonionic polymers, in the range of 0-7.0 wt % NaCl concentrations, and the viscosity of the polymer solution is relatively invariant with NaCl above 3.0 wt % NaCl concentration. Below 3 wt %, the viscosity shows a maximum then a minimum, an unusual behavior. Generally, the polymer exhibits an almost constant viscosity at high shear rates and a typical shear thinning behavior at low shear rates. In addition, increasing polymer concentration and molecular weight leads to an increase in the polymer solution viscosity. Moreover, the polymer exhibits smaller solution viscosity at a high temperature, and a slight decrease in viscosity is also exhibited by the modified polymer with aging. Comparison of the viscosities of 18 polymer modifications indicates that the larger the numbers of hydrophobic groups (side chains) in the polymer structure, the smaller the viscosity. Moreover, the longer the hydrophobic groups (side chains) in the polymer structure, the greater the viscosity, if their number is small.