Winner’s Bag: Adam Scott, The Genesis Invitational

SILVIS, Ill. — The teenaged kid from Little Silver, N.J., was just another name on the lesson schedule when Jason Birnbaum checked in for work at his indoor learning center at Manhattan Woods Golf Club on a crisp January afternoon in 2013. A couple of 120 miles-per-hour swings later, Birnbaum knew Chris Gotterup’s was a name he would remember. When a 42-foot eagle putt at TPC Deere Run’s 14th hole briefly vaulted him into a share of his first lead on the PGA TOUR early Friday afternoon, Gotterup similarly let the golf world know his is a name it may be hearing a lot for a good long while. The reigning Jack Nicklaus Award winner out of the University of Oklahoma, Gotterup parred his way home from No. 14, missing a downhill 3-footer for birdie at the home hole, and posted a 10-under midway total that puts him squarely in the weekend hunt at the John Deere Classic. “Yeah, happy to get to 10,” said the rookie professional making his fifth start on TOUR this year on a John Deere Classic tournament sponsor’s exemption. “I had good look at 17. And then 18, I actually did everything perfectly and just misread the putt. “So it is what it is. You pick up some where you don’t expect to and lose some where you don’t expect to also. I’m pleased to be where I am at.” Great expectations ofttimes fizzle, but Gotterup is the latest young player to hit the TOUR with big talent, and, like two-time John Deere Classic winner Jordan Spieth and others before him, he could be the newest young pro to use the Deere as a launching pad to stardom. “His game is as ready for big-time pro golf as anybody I have been around,” declared Ryan Hybl, who has seen his share of TOUR-ready players as the ninth-year head coach at Oklahoma and as an assistant coach and player at the University of Georgia before that. “His ball-striking is TOUR quality and his driving can be unbeatable at times. More importantly, he is gritty and he believes he is supposed to be there, which is high on the value chart.” The grittiness isn’t always evident in Gotterup’s outwardly laconic demeanor. Morton Gotterup once said that as a junior golfer his son was more likely to wonder what he’d order at Taco Bell post-round than to follow his competitors to the range. Even Birnbaum, the accomplished instructor who continues to help Gotterup hone his big swing, suggested rolling out of bed for early tee TOUR times may be Gotterup’s biggest professional challenge. “It’s not like he can’t sleep,” said the swing coach. “He’s unfazed by all this.” Yet, behind all that “chill” is a cool and very confident competitor who’s willing to put in the work required to harness his powerful game. “He’s extremely focused,” said Birnbaum, whose clientele also includes such accomplished professionals as Roberto Diaz, Oliver Wilson, Alexandre Rocha, Julieta Granada and past PGA TOUR winner Jim McGovern. “The Taco Bell comment is funny and it’s not totally inaccurate. But he’s practicing and he’s working hard as well.” Over the past nine years, Gotterup has pushed that 120 mph swing speed that still is the fastest Birnbaum has seen in a teen to a high of 133 mph. “And that’s the fastest I’ve seen for a TOUR pro,’’ Birnbaum said. En route to a T35 finish at last week’s Traveler’s Championship, Gotterup led the field with an average of 328.5 yards over eight measured drives, which was 12 yards beyond Rory McIlroy’s average for the week. Friday at Deere Run, he set up his eagle at the short 14th with a drive of 351 yards, birdied the par-5 second after a drive of 354 yards, and settled for easy pars after respective tee shots of 353 yards on 15 and 368 on 9. Yet, his talent only starts on the tee. “Probably around his sophomore year of college at Rutgers is really when I started to say this kid’s got what it takes to be the best player in the world,” Birnbaum said. “He started to put up a bunch of 62s and 63s at some big local and college events; started to develop a better wedge game, a better short game. He started to keep the drives in play a little bit more.” After earning first-team All-American status and 2019-2020 Big Ten Player of Year honors at Rutgers, Gotterup’s path led to Oklahoma. There, he finished a shot out of a playoff for NCAA medalist honors in May, while helping the Sooners to the national team championship. He also earned the Nicklaus Award designating the top player in NCAA Division I. In March, Gotterup contended as an amateur en route to a T7 finish at the Puerto Rico Open. Earlier this month, he finished T43 at the U.S. Open followed by last week’s T35 at the Travelers. A big Deere finish could go a long way toward earning a spot in the Korn Ferry Tour qualifying tournament later this year. A Top 10 would book a start at next week’s Barbosal Championship, and Gotterup also has a chance to earn one of the Open Championship berths available to the three highest Top 10 JDC finishers not otherwise exempt for the year’s final major in two weeks at fabled St. Andrews. With a sponsor’s exemption awaiting in the end-of-the-month Rocket Mortgage Classic, that amounts to a busy July. Rather than sweat the future, though, Gotterup will chill. “I just am worried about getting some rest this afternoon,” he said Friday. “I don’t think too far ahead. Usually when you think too far ahead bad things happen in the present. I’m just going to focus on this week, and whatever comes from it, comes from it.”

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The second World Golf Championships (WGC) event will be the Dell Technologies Match Play at Austin Country Club in Austin, Texas. The course is a par 71, measuring 7,082 yards and will be on TifEagle bermudagrass overseeded with Poa Trivialis. Like TPC Sawgrass a couple of weeks ago, Austin Country Club is a Pete Dye design. The tournament starts on Wednesday and ends with the final match on Sunday. The top 64 ranked golfers in the world will be in the field except for Brooks Koepka, Adam Scott, Justin Rose, Gary Woodland and Tiger Woods, who have decided not to play even though they qualified. The past three winners here include Kevin Kisner (+6600, $7,600) in 2019, Bubba Watson +10000, $7,400) in 2018 and Dustin Johnson (+1200, $11,500) in 2017. Set your DraftKings fantasy golf lineups here: PGA TOUR $600K Resurgence [$200K to 1st] FORMAT There are 16 groups made up of four golfers in each group. They'll each play the other three golfers once, and the player with the highest point total after the group stage advances to the Round of 16, which will be single elimination. Wednesday through Friday will be the Round of 64, Saturday will be the Round of 16 and the quarterfinals. Sunday will be the final and the third-place matches. STRATEGY Another Pete Dye design presents another test of precision golf. Austin Country Club sports deep pot bunkers, undulations throughout fairways and greens, and resembles a Scottish-links style layout. The course also has its lowlands and highlands, and players like Jordan Spieth (+2500, $9,300) have mentioned that the two nines play like two different courses. All Pete Dye courses demand precision with the approach shot, but we should also be leaning toward Strokes Gained: Off-the-Tee more this week. Gamesmanship is a factor in Match Play. Triple bogeys don't carry the same negative weight as they do in stroke play, but driving it past your opponent and playing your second shot based on what your opponent does is advantageous in this setting. The course doesn't just suit the bombers, but when Dustin Johnson and Bubba Watson win here, we should be taking notice. We should also include standard strokes gained stats alongside Match Play success and experience this week. Ian Poulter (+10000, $6,700) has lost strokes through approach in seven-straight measured tournaments but has one of the best singles Match Play records at 43-18-5 for his career. Conversely, Collin Morikawa (+1800, $10,400) ranks first in Strokes Gained: Approach-the-Green over the previous 24 rounds and makes his first Match Play appearance in his PGA TOUR career. GOLFERS TO CONSIDER Tyrrell Hatton (+3300 to Win, $8,600 on DraftKings) The highest-ranked golfer in Group 8 should be one to consider this week given how well he's currently playing and how successful he is in this format. Hatton's career singles record is 9-6-1, finishing T9 here back in 2019. Outside of the missed cut at THE PLAYERS a couple of weeks ago, Hatton hasn't finished worse than a T23 worldwide since November of last year. Hatton will seldom outdrive anyone in his group, but he shouldn't be losing a ton of strokes off-the-tee to his opponent, ranking 15th over the previous 24 rounds. His approach game ranks top 5 over the same timeframe and he should be someone to chase this week unless you're competing against him. Scottie Scheffler (+4000 to Win, $7,900 on DraftKings) He'll have to get past Jason Day (+5000, $8,400), the 2016 Champion, and Xander Schauffele (+2500, $10,000), the sixth-ranked golfer in the world, but we should like his chances this week on a semi-home course in Austin, Texas. The University of Texas alum could go under the radar in his quadrant with Jon Rahm (+1400, $10,700) and Xander potentially leading the way in sentiment this week. His PGA TOUR Match Play experience is non-existent, but he's no stranger to this format. He won the 2013 Junior USGA Championship and defeated Aaron Wise in their singles match during the 2016 NCAA National Championship Final. Another player to consider is Abraham Ancer (+5000, $7,700), who is in Group 13. He played exceptionally well at the 2019 President's Cup, finished T17 here back in 2019 and ranks second in Strokes Gained: Tee-to-Green on Pete Dye courses over the previous 24 rounds. Brian Harman (+8000 to Win, $7,200 on DraftKings) Group 10's low man is another under-the-radar golfer we should be considering this week. A top 3 finish at TPC Sawgrass a couple of weeks ago is part of what makes up his fantastic experience on Pete Dye courses, ranking second in Strokes Gained: Total on Dye courses over the previous 24 rounds. Harman finished T9 here back in 2018, which consisted of beating Rory McIlroy (+1800, $10,200) 5 and 3. Harman has a 2-1-1 career singles record in Match Play. Another longshot who could surprise this week is Robert MacIntyre (+15000, $6,500), who'll have to take down the No. 1 golfer in the world to advance. MacIntyre is from Scotland, and this layout shares a lot of similarities to courses he's played back in his home country. Like Scheffler, his experience in Match Play on the PGA TOUR is zero; he doesn't even have a lot of experience playing on the PGA TOUR. This week could be a launching pad for the young-professional if he could beat Dustin Johnson and Match Play maven Kevin Na (+10000, $7,100) to advance. Set your DraftKings fantasy golf lineups here: PGA TOUR $600K Resurgence [$200K to 1st] Bracket Challenge • The brackets are live for the 2021 World Golf Championships-Dell Technologies Match Play • Get your picks in before play starts Wednesday, March 24th for your chance to win a VIP Tournament Experience to the 2022 WGC-Dell Technologies Match Play! • VIP Experience includes (2) VIP tickets, (2) Hotel nights, Pin Flag signed by the 2021 tournament champion and $100 merchandise gift to spend on-site at the PGA TOUR Fan Shop (more details below) • Two (2) VIP tickets for 3 days of winner's choice • Two (2) consecutive nights stay at the tournament host hotel • Pin flag signed by the 2021 tournament champion • $100 merchandise gift to spend on-site at the PGA TOUR Fan Shop • The World Golf Championships-Dell Technologies Match Play, March 24-28 • To fill out your bracket, visit https://fantasybracket.pgatour.com/#/picks/mine Put your knowledge to the test. 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