Los Angeles (United States) (AFP) – Chris Gotterup is off to another hot start in his bid to claim a second US PGA Tour title of 2026 at the Phoenix Open, where frustrated world number one Scottie Scheffler was 10 shots off the pace. Gotterup, winner of the Sony Open in Hawaii last month, rode a red-hot putter to an eight-under-par 63 that featured an eagle and six birdies. He teed off on 10 at TPC Scottsdale and kickstarted his round with a 27-foot eagle putt from off the green at the 13th. Gotterup added birdies at 14, 15 and 16 before rolling in a 24-foot birdie at 18, picking up a stroke at the third before a final 27-foot birdie putt at the seventh.
“I feel like I’m doing things well and thinking through things well, and I think that’s the most important thing,” Gotterup said. “I wouldn’t say today I drove it my best. I putted great today, but I just was in the right spot when I needed to be.” The 26-year-old from Maryland played alongside Scheffler, who was visibly frustrated by a string of uncharacteristic errors in a two-over-par 73 that has left his streak of 65 straight made cuts in jeopardy. Scheffler’s opening birdie was followed by a bogey at 11, where he was in the water off the tee. A birdie at 13 was followed by another bogey at 14, where he again pulled his tee shot.
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Scheffler, a two-time Phoenix winner who won his first start of 2026 at La Quinta last month, was looking steadier after birdies at 15 and 17. But a botched chip that rolled back to his feet for a birdie at 18 had him rapping his club against his thighs in irritation. A three-putt bogey at the first was followed by a double-bogey at the second, where he was unable to recover from a poor lie in a fairway bunker. He clawed back a shot at the third but saw another poor chip spin back to him for a bogey at the eighth. After his first over-par round since June, Scheffler headed straight for the practice range.
Gotterup was two strokes clear of England’s Matthew Fitzpatrick, whose “scrappy” start didn’t stop him from scoring well early on the way to a six-under-par 65. Fitzpatrick opened with back-to-back birdies at 10 and 11 and strung together five birdies in a row from the 13th through the 17th. He reached eight-under with a birdie at the third before closing with back-to-back bogeys. “It’s disappointing,” Fitzpatrick admitted of the bogey-bogey finish. “I guess the way you’ve got to look at it is if I started bogey-bogey and you finish six-under you come off feeling like the greatest player in the world. You’ve got to try and reframe it there,” added Fitzpatrick, who was one stroke in front of a group of four players sharing third on five-under.
Five-time major-winner Brooks Koepka, playing his second tournament since returning to the PGA Tour from the breakaway LIV Golf league, had a tough day, carding five bogeys and one birdie in his four-over 75.
© 2024 AFP
