Chris Gotterup Wins John Deere Classic After Sunday 62

He continued his charge on the back nine, carding four more birdies to finish with a 9-under 62, the lowest round of the week at TPC Deere Run. With the clubhouse lead at 20 under, Gotterup went back outside to the range, attempting to stay loose while keeping an eye on the final round broadcast.

“One way or another, someone is going to say something, so I might as well just watch and follow along,” he said. “It’s nice to just kind of feel the situation out.”

As co-leader Ben Kohles came down 18 needing a par to win, Gotterup watched Kohles’ second shot find the water. Kohles would sign for a double bogey, kickstarting the celebrations for Gotterup.

“Obviously to not have to go into a playoff is nice, but I was ready to go for a playoff if need be,” he said.

The win was special to Gotterup, who received a sponsor exemption to play in the tournament in 2022. He would finish T4 for his first top-five finish on the PGA Tour.

Years later, the tournament still holds a special place in his heart, even referring to it as the PGA Tour’s “Fifth Major” at the Arnold Palmer Invitational in March. 

“It really kick-started my whole career, honestly,” Gotterup said. “At that time, I had no status anywhere. To get a fourth here was the biggest tournament of my life at that point. Obviously, we’re biased towards places that we play well at and that we like, and this is one of those for me. To be able to come back and win makes it even more special.”

New on the bag this week was Gotterup’s younger brother Patrick, who filled in while Gotterup’s full-time caddie took time off for paternity leave.

“We planned this out a couple of months ago,” Gotterup said. “We were just planning on having a fun week and obviously try to come win, but to have it actually happen is cool and just a special moment that we’ll never forget.”

With the win under his belt, Gotterup will quickly head across the pond, defending his title at the Genesis Scottish Open ahead of the Open Championship.

“I think just getting good tournament reps is helpful,” he said. “I felt like the last two weeks I was kind of grinding through some stuff. Obviously, this week I came out and played great golf.”

“Hopefully I’ll keep it going and get some sleep on the plane tonight.”