By Rich Chrampanis
MYRTLE BEACH, S.C. – The PGA Tour had two tournaments last week with the Championship on the horizon. While Rory McIlroy dominated the Wells Fargo Championship by five shots in Charlotte, Chris Gotterup was doing the same thing in Myrtle Beach. Gotterup procured a six- shot victory while showcasing the skills and shotmaking that have now cemented him as one of the rising young stars in professional golf.
Gotterup shot a blistering 22-under par over 72 holes to win his first PGA Tour event. For the former Christian Brothers Academy standout who went on to Rutgers and the University of Oklahoma – where he won the Jack Nicklaus award – the victory came in just his 27th PGA Tour start.
“Yeah, I definitely knew at some point, hopefully, that I would be in this position. Golf is a crazy game. You never know where you’re going to end up,” Gotterup said.
“I feel like I’ve done a lot of the right things in my process and going through the system that the Tour has provided, and yeah, now we’re here.”
Winning a PGA Tour event is life-changing and for the 24-year-old Gotterup, thoughts of back home helped him ease the nerves before his final round at the inaugural Myrtle Beach Classic at the Dunes Club. Gotterup crafted his game at the Rumson Country Club while enjoying the Jersey Shore just down the road from his Little Silver home.
“Yeah, in the morning I set my alarm for 9. I got up at 6. I was a little upset about that one, so I had some time to kill. Actually just went down to the beach and walked for an hour,” Gotterup said. “I grew up by the beach, so I like going to the beach. I like hanging out. I like being in the water and the ocean, just makes you feel good, and being able to play right here, we had an Airbnb right down the road and I was able to hang out at the beach in the morning, and I probably looked like a lunatic this morning pacing up and down the beach, but it helps clear your mind.”
After an opening round 66, Gotterup vaulted himself to the top of the leaderboard in the second round with an unreal back nine. He birdied the final four holes and carded a 30 on the way to a 7-under par 64 to take a one-shot lead through 36 holes.
In the third round, the Little Silver native birdied the 18th to finish with a 6-under 65 and built a four-shot lead heading into the final 18 holes. Thanks to playing eight events on sponsor exemptions following his graduate school year at Oklahoma, Gotterup is not technically considered a rookie. Following a year on the Korn Ferry Tour to earn his 2024 PGA Tour card, the newcomer to the big stage still had to overcome the nerves that any pro golfer with a chance to win the tournament has. With bogeys on the first two holes, it could have been the storyline for a collapse. Instead, one of the Tour’s longest hitters turned right around with a birdie on the third, an eagle on the par-5 fourth and one more birdie to right the ship.
“The first hole was probably nerves. I don’t know, I really didn’t even feel that bad. I hit not a good second putt, and not a good first one,” Gotterup said. “But the second hole, it was like a 75-footer up and over into the wind. The odds aren’t in my favor on that one.
“The first hole, that one bothered me a little bit. Then I settled in nicely. I was actually in a divot on the third hole and hit it to about four, five feet. Once I got going, it was definitely much more calm-ish.”
The back nine became a celebration for the local golf community and Rutgers golf. On the par-4 15th hole, Gotterup drove the middle of the fairway 345 yards with a club head speed of 188 miles per hour. Only a handful of people on tour can produce those kinds of analytics.
Even more impressive was his putter. It was only fitting that Gotterup’s tournament ended with a birdie putt on the 72nd hole that hugged the left edge and dropped in.
Gotterup’s parents, Kate and Morten, along with brother Patrick, traveled from the Two River area to the Grand Strand of South Carolina to witness the victory in person Sunday. Fortunately for Chris, winning his first PGA Tour event on Mother’s Day made up for what would have been a delayed delivery to Little Silver. “It was good because I ordered flowers and they weren’t going to make it, so she’ll get them when she goes back home,” Gotterup said.
With competition across the world, holding on to a PGA Tour card is always the pressure newcomers have to deal with week by week as they look to earn their place. With the Myrtle Beach win, Gotterup not only pocketed $720,000 but has earned exempt status on the PGA Tour for the next two years.
“Yeah, I mean, I think the biggest thing is the two more years. I’ve got no stress in my life for two years other than golf stress,” Gotterup said. “I think especially starting off my rookie year, kind of some events you’re not getting in, here and there, you’re like, I need to play good to maintain my card. And now I don’t have to worry about that. That’s a huge worry gone. Now I can just go focus on trying to make a move further up the FedExCup.”
With the win comes 300 FedEx Cup Points, moving Gotterup into the Top 70, the benchmark for the year-end playoffs and $25 million in prize money.
The newest first-time PGA Tour winner found out quickly life can change when you have a win under your belt: Gotterup was supposed to have a week off. Instead, he’s now in the field at Valhalla for the PGA Championship. This will be his second major after finishing 43rd in the 2022 U.S. Open.
The celebration in Myrtle Beach was subdued with a quick turnaround to Kentucky for the PGA, but rest assured, Chris will enjoy this milestone with family and friends.
“(Sunday night) is going to be chill,” Gotterup said. “But I can promise you down the road, at some point in New Jersey, there will be a big party.
Middletown’s McCormick Posts Career-Best PGA Tour Finish
Overall, it was a tremendous week for New Jersey PGA Tour newcomers. Ryan McCormick, who graduated from Mater Dei Prep and called Middletown home, finished in a tie for fourth at the Myrtle Beach Classic, earning a career-best $147,000. McCormick shot up the leaderboard Sunday with a 64 to finish 15-under par, seven shots behind Gotterup.
McCormick has made five cuts in 11 tournaments and is now 156th in the FedEx Cup points standings.
The article originally appeared in the May 16 – May 22, 2024 print edition of The Two River Times.
