Chris Gotterup wasn’t going to play the Puerto Rico Open.
It’s a course he has plenty of success at. He won an event at Grand Reserve Golf Club when he was in college. Last year, he finished in the top 10 during his Tour start in Rio Grande. But as the deadline neared last Friday, Gotterup wasn’t making plans to take the trek to the Caribbean.
“I signed up after my round on Friday at Cognizant,” Gotterup said. “Talked to … because we have a big stretch coming up here and I was like, ‘do I really want to play seven in a row,’ but my agent called me and my dad talked to me and they said I think you should go down there and play, and I’m like ‘yeah, let’s do it.’
“I’m happy they told me to do that.”
Gotterup opened in 9-under 63 on Thursday morning, finishing his round before a storm caused a brief suspension in play for those in the late morning wave. Last year, Gotterup got his first Tour win at the Myrtle Beach Classic. This year has been a struggle, missing five of his last six cuts and making the weekend only twice in 2025, but one strong round can change a lot.
“Yeah, it always feels good to come back to a place you’ve played well at,” Gotterup said.
He was 10 under for the round with one hole to play but made bogey on the last, signing for 63. He trails Kevin Roy, who had 11 birdies in his first round, by one shot after Thursday’s morning wave completed.
For Gotterup, he feels the good vibes as soon as he steps on property.
“I see the greens well,” he said. “I don’t know other than that what the answer is, but I have a good feeling when I come down here.”
This article originally appeared on Golfweek: Why this PGA Tour winner joined Puerto Rico Open field at last minute
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