Gotterup Records Stellar Performance in First PGA Tour Start at Puerto Rico Open

PUERTO RICO – 2019 New Jersey Open Champion Chris Gotterup entered the field of the 2022 Puerto Rico Open by winning the Puerto Rico Classic, a collegiate event from February 13-15. It was his first PGA Tour start, and Gotterup, of Little Silver put together quite the performance.

Coming off a rocky t-50th finish at the Southern Highlands Collegiate in Las Vegas, Gotterup traveled to Puerto Rico and notched a t-7th finish at Grand Reserve Golf Club, becoming the first amateur to post a top-10 on Tour since Sam Burns at the 2017 Barbasol Championship.

“I knew I’d play well on the course because I played well here a couple of weeks ago,” Gotterup reflected. “I came straight from Vegas, where to be honest, I played pretty poorly. I flew in and tried to get settled in on Wednesday. I started off really well and the weather was a little tricky at the end, so I steadied the ship. I wasn’t really worried about a number, I just wanted to go play well.”

Gotterup posted four consecutive rounds below par and did so with his New Jersey contingent from near and far supporting him.

“I had about 15 people there,” Gotterup said. “My parents were there; my siblings couldn’t make it because they had school, my best friend Ryan caddied for me, his parents were there, our really good family friends, a couple members from Rumson and there was plenty of support from home on my phone too. It was awesome to see that pop up. I always knew it’s there but it kind of came to life this week.”

Thank you to everyone who followed along this week. Truly special and just the beginning! 🏠💰 pic.twitter.com/sGkunTI7fa

— chris gotterup (@ChrisGotterup) March 8, 2022

In the most recent Golfweek NCAA men’s individual rankings, Gotterup checked in at No. 2. The Oklahoma University fifth-year golfer is reaching new heights as he’s competing against the best of the best in Norman. Since transferring from Rutgers in 2021, Gotterup has collected three top-20 finishes and a victory.

“I’ve kind of been hitting it the same. Maybe my short game is getting better here and there but I think it’s all mental and self-confidence and belief that I can actually do it,” Gotterup explained. “Every day at practice we have five, six, seven guys that are some of the best in the country, so going up against those guys, you can get humbled a little bit and that keeps you working harder. That’s been a huge part of my growth in the last couple of months.”

The Oklahoma team isn’t so bad either – the Sooners are currently ranked No. 2 according to Golfweek. Out of seven events so far this season, Oklahoma has won four.

For Gotterup, there is still a lot of golf left to play before he returns to the professional scene.

“At some point down the timeline I’ll turn professional,” said Gotterup. “That's coming at some point, but I’m focused on just finishing the year out strong. Once I’m done with my school year here, I’ll be able to dive deeper into that but it’s coming at some point.”

Gotterup earned NJSGA Robert Housen Men's Player of the Year honors in 2019. 

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