Meet Chris Gotterup - On the Verge of PGA Tour Stardom

Prior to the 4th of July holiday, Chris Gotterup hadn't been home in nearly three months.  In a diabolical, roller-coaster stretch of golf from May through July Chris played in the NCAA National Championships, RBC Canadian Open, U.S. Open, Travelers Championship, John Deere Classic, and Barbasol Championship without any break at all.

I talked with Chris recently from his home in New Jersey and straight up asked him how he's even still standing.  His reply?  "Yeah it's been crazy honestly but I love it all.  And at the end of the day golf is golf, you just gotta go play well no matter where it is."  Wait, what?  Golf is golf?  These words on paper may sound cliché, but for Gotterup this is profoundly revealing of who he is and the depths of his personality both on and off the course.

If you've watched Gotterup play at any level you've seen his rise in the golfing world pick up speed with each transition he's made.  In four years at Rutgers University he shattered school records and was named Big Ten Player of the Year in 2020.  After transferring to Oklahoma University with an extra year of eligibility (because of the COVID pandemic) he won the prestigious 2022 Haskins Award and Jack Nicklaus Award as the best male collegiate golfer in the country.

And in five starts on the PGA Tour since turning pro in June Chris has finished T43 in his first U.S. Open, T35 at the Travelers Championship, and T4 at the John Deere Classic (and was leader in the clubhouse on Sunday with just a few holes left to play).

Gotterup's talent is undeniable.  But he knows there's more work to do and lessons to be learned along the way.  Chris describes himself as a feel player as opposed to a technical one.  And he's worked with revered instructor Jason Birnbaum since high school.

I asked Chris about the challenges and differences he's faced playing a Tour schedule compared to what he knew in college.

 "Monday through Wednesday I can get a little antsy, especially Wednesday.  Figuring out how to get rest but also kill time has been interesting.  In college I played practice rounds with my teammates, out here you're on the road more by yourself.  I've talked to coach (Ryan Hybl) about it and my caddie and buddy Ryan and I try to get out there and just do stupid things to pass the time.  Thursday through Sunday though are a lot of fun."

A lot of fun, and not a word about pressure.  I had to smile.  Golf is golf as Chris says, remember?

It's easy to get caught up and really just marvel at Gotterup's game.  His swing is powerful yet free and easy.  His ball striking surgical, hitting irons into greens like they're guided by a homing device.  And off the tee Chris absolutely murders the ball.  Gotterup led the Travelers Championship field in Driving Distance at 328.7 yards, and the following week at John Deere he nearly did it again averaging 335.1 yards.  Gotterup can also get his ball speed up and over 200 mph when he pushes it.

Driving distance: 327.5 yards (1st in field) ✅
Fairways hit: 78.57% (only two fewer than field leader) ✅

Pretty good first day for Chris Gotterup at The Travelers Championship. 👍 pic.twitter.com/uTLj7d3762

— Pete Pappas (@PGAPappas) June 24, 2022

Chris said he's been working on his short game for awhile now, and understands how important it is to get birdie looks any given week.  So you might assume Gotterup's out there grinding all the time just hitting buckets and buckets of balls perfecting his craft, right? 

"I get my work done, practice and hit balls when I need to, hit some putts, but I'm not going to be out there all day wasting energy."

Again, there's that golf is golf thing, matter of fact but so profound in its simplicity.

This is not to say Gotterup isn't constantly focused on moving forward, dedicated to getting things done, and taking action and responsibility to keep improving.  He absolutely is.

But Chris is doing it his way, putting things together in ways that work for him in order to achieve greatness.  And that kind of self awareness and living completely in the moment is something many people never truly understand or experience let alone a 22 year-old fighting to fulfill his dream of punching that ticket to the PGA Tour.

Take his bag of equipment as another example.  Gotterup does have a Nike deal to wear The Swoosh, but his equipment is the same that he played while at Oklahoma.  Chris showed me his WITB from The Country Club during the U.S. Open.  It includes a TaylorMade and wedges, Titleist fairway wood and ball, Callaway irons, and Scotty Cameron putter.

Chris Gotterup WITB at the US Open.
👀 A filthy smorgasbord of ball striking awesome. 🔥🔥🔥

Thanks CG. 👍 pic.twitter.com/uqASTShq6j

— Pete Pappas (@PGAPappas) June 18, 2022

Gotterup is open to an equipment deal down the road, and believe me OEM's are ready to pounce on bringing him on board.  But Chris is in no rush to jump into anything that doesn't make sense for him right now.  He continues to figure it all out by doing the things that got him here and concentrating on the task at hand.

As impressive as Gotterup's physical talents are, maybe even more impressive is the poise and maturity he shows on the course.

Chris started 5-over par at the U.S. Open and then rallied to make the cut with a clutch birdie on the final hole on Friday at Brookline.  And on Championship Sunday he put together a better front nine (3-under par) than anyone who finished in the top-20.

Best round of the day going on championship Sunday at the US Open?

Chris Freaking Gotterup! 👀🔥🔥🔥 pic.twitter.com/S5HvMXFn3K

— Pete Pappas (@PGAPappas) June 19, 2022

At the John Deere Classic Gotterup shanked his first shot of the day on Saturday into the native area taking a penalty.  It had all the signs of a blow-up hole but Chris escaped with just a bogey.  And then Gotterup followed that up with an eagle on No. 2 and a birdie on No. 4 to put himself in the mix for Sunday.

When I asked Chris if there's a shot he'd like to have back in the five starts he's had on Tour as a pro, it wasn't the particular shot that was illuminating as much as it was the reason why.

"No. 13 at The Travelers, I pulled it left OB.  And it kind of derailed a round that I could have had a top-20 finish, maybe top-15 finish, instead I finished T35."

Gotterup didn't let that OB shot (and eventual bogey) fester.  Instead he strung together four straight pars and finished with a birdie on No. 18.  But again it was a teaching moment.  He knows you don't need to be perfect on Tour to win, yet at the same time every shot counts.  That's a fine line of sense and insight, a mental attitude really that has Chris absorbing the lessons of both positives and negatives from every tournament he plays in.

And anyone who's watched Gotterup play on Tour the last few months will tell you he already looks like a seasoned veteran.  He just doesn't seem to get rattled.  I asked Chris how he's able to keep his composure out there and how did that part of his personality develop.  His answer was fascinating.

"I don't know if I have a good answer but I've worked on things that help me get to know myself better.  Like mental, psychological, and emotional tests that tell you what your strengths and weaknesses are.  And I tested high for competitiveness, long periods of focus, and being able to drop things easily."

Chris referred me back to his opening shot Saturday at John Deere and admitted to "MF'ing himself" but only for 10 or 15 seconds and then was good to go.

"I get on myself when I hit a bad shot, but I'll drop it fast and not let it affect my next shot.  If you let (bad shots) build they'll just leak to the next shot and then the next shot."

Leader in the Clubhouse baby! 🔥🔥🔥

Chris Gotterup goes bogey free with three consecutive birdies to his final round at the John Deere Classic!

And also positions himself (if he stays Top-3) to earn one of the three Open Championship exceptions. #GotterUP📈👀 pic.twitter.com/d06vdQfAdF

— Pete Pappas (@PGAPappas) July 3, 2022

Again I was just struck by how self aware and grounded Gotterup is.  A mature foundation, methodical, and able to compartmentalize challenges in such a matter of fact way.  His words again ran through my head, golf is golf.  And really on a deeper level life is life.  I asked him to send me copies or links to those tests he took because I want to do the same damn thing, no lie.

Through all Gotterup's success he also remains extremely humble and loyal to those who helped him get here.  He talks fondly of his days at Rutgers as a Scarlet Knight and is a Jersey Boy through and through.  He told me a few times how he "really needed to get home (over the holiday weekend) to be with family, hang out with friends on the beach, and just decompress."  He mentioned "Coach" many times and you could tell from the tone in his voice how important Ryan Hybl remains for Gotterup.  And talking about his days at Oklahoma Chris still marveled at shots his teammates would hit on a daily basis that made his jaw drop.

I met Chris at the East Lake Cup and honestly have been on board the Gotterup Express ever since.  Of course I love watching him play, but he's also just a really good dude, he's funny, and he has a clever sense of humor.  And not that I needed any more reason to like him, when he told me he has four dogs that just about did it.  Chris has a German Shepherd, Golden Retriever,  Great Pyrenees, and Mini Australian Shepherd.

As our talk winded down I think we both were getting a bit delirious.  Me because as you guys know I hardly ever sleep.  Chris because, well he just freaking competed in seven-plus straight weeks of high stakes, high intensity golf one tournament right after the other.  I asked him some rapid fire questions, and here are a few of his answers.

Me: Your nicknames, do people call you Gotty, Gotter, Gott, what does everyone call you?

Chris: "My family friends call me CGott, and all my friends call me C; there's just an array, Chris, I have probably 30 different names."

Me: If you have a walk-up song at a tournament what would it be?

Chris: "Gosh that's a good one. (dramatic pause and exhale) I'm into different genres at the moment.  I could go country or I could go EDM it depends.  Let's just go... give me some Tiesto song, you can put it on shuffle."

And you know I asked Chris about that glove.  Gotterup leaves the Velcro on his glove open and everyone from color commentators during broadcasts to a lot of you on social have been asking and wondering why.

He laughed before answering.

"I don't like the way it feels when it's strapped over.  I feel like I'm too tight, or like I'm stuck in there.  I used to have it strapped in all the time but I started opening it up when I was chipping because it let me feel more free, my hands, my swing; and then I started doing it with all the clubs.  It just lets me feel free and loose, which is kinda how I do everything.  Been doing it a bunch of years now."

Gotterup tees it up again this week at the 3M Open and next week at the Rocket Mortgage Classic on sponsor exemptions with the goal in sight again - full PGA Tour status.  A win in either event earns him his Tour card outright.  Chris is also exempt for The Memorial in 2023 as the winner of the Jack Nicklaus Award.  And 25 more Tour cards will be awarded in the Korn Ferry Tour Finals which kick off next month.

Nicklaus once said "achievement is largely the product of steadily raising ones level of aspiration and expectation."  And Gotterup has developed a habit of coming out on top since he first picked up a golf club.  The last thing I said to Chris was I'd like a signed flag when he wins his first Tour event.

"I gotcha," Chris replied.