If you were to ask who the player with the most wins on the PGA Tour in the past 365 days would be, most people would go for the easy result and throw out the name of world No. 1 Scottie Scheffler. And they would be right. Scheffler’s record last year was four, but he’s not the only one with that number.
But the man standing alongside Scheffler at the top is not Rory McIlroy or Matt Fitzpatrick, but Chris Gotterup, a 26-year-old American with only one win on the PGA Tour, coming at last year’s Scottish Open.
Gotterp (7th place) is the youngest player in the top 10 of the Official World Golf Ranking, with only Ludwig Oberg (three months his junior) matching him in the top 20. Since the spring of 2024, when Gotterp won his first career victory at the Myrtle Beach Classic, Scheffler is the only player behind him in PGA Tour wins.
Since then, his victories have been manifold. Although there were efforts to reverse the situation, Like Sunday at the 2026 John Deere Classica playoff victory that included defeating Hideki Matsuyama at the WM Phoenix Open, and a successful 54-hole conversion that included fending off McIlroy at the 2025 Scottish Open, marking the beginning of his recent string of successes.
Still, there seems to be a lag in the broader golf world’s perception of Gottharp. Although his game catches up with the best players in the world and his height is right behind him, he is not considered the top player in the world.
Top players in their 20s
3 | Cameron Young | 29 years 1 month old |
6 | Collin Morikawa | 29 years 4 months old |
7 | Chris Gotterup | 26 years 11 months old |
13 | Viktor Hovland | 28 years 9 months old |
17 | sam burns | 29 years 11 months old |
19 | Ludwig Oberg | 26 years 8 months old |
20 | robert mcintyre | 29 years 10 months old |
Gotterup has more wins than the likes of Young and Oberg, and is often considered the most likely candidate to win his first major whenever these championships are held. In fact, he currently has as many wins as those two combined (five). Before his T43 at the U.S. Open, Gottapp had finished in the top 25 at majors four years in a row, including a solo third-place finish at last year’s Royal Portrush Open.
His game works everywhere. Need to think deeply? Well, in 2026 alone, the final round scores for the championship are 64, 64, 62. His victory at the Scottish Open came thanks to a third-round 61. The ceiling is close to being established, but for young up-and-coming stars, it’s the floor that will serve as a foundation going forward.
And Gottap has something that’s getting tougher and tougher.
“I felt like I really came through this week,” he said at the John Deere Classic. “Obviously, everything went well (Sunday), but the first three days I wasn’t at my best. As I said earlier in the week, some of the things that weren’t great were a lot better. That’s great. Then coming out (Sunday) and hitting nine under was obviously great. It definitely wasn’t what was in the cards, but I’m definitely going to take what I was dealt.”
It’s fun to play a perfect 72 holes, but professional golfers know it’s impossible. Days off are just as important, in fact, even more so, than when everything is going well. You might think they are common because they make the game look easier, but they are very few.
Scratch, claw, and get ready for Sunday. Create chances for victory. Gottap did this better than most last year and continues to capitalize on it.
Whether the reason identified is his course management, his overall game, his sense of the moment, or a combination of all, what is clear is that he has the mental fortitude and competitiveness to overcome such situations.
“I think it’s always a work in progress. Golfers, we’re all crazy. The bad feels really bad, even if it’s not that bad, and the product feels like it’s invincible,” Gottapp said. “Obviously I had a really good day (Sunday). Overall, it’s been a really good year, but obviously I got off to a great start and was giving it my all in the middle of the year. But that’s not unexpected.
“Hopefully this is the start of something else great. Well, I’d be lying if I said this year wasn’t a huge success. Hopefully we still have a few tournaments left so we’ll just keep it going and keep running until the end of the year.”
