Drive Far, Miss Smart: The Strategy Behind Chris Gotterup’s Big Win

You’ve heard it a thousand times: “Drive for show, putt for dough.” It’s golf’s most famous cliche, repeated by weekend warriors and teaching pros alike. But Chris Gotterup just won the WM Phoenix Open while ranking T49 in putting for the week, and his victory tells a completely different story about how to actually score in golf.

Gotterup smashed it off the tee (332 yards average, 4th in the field), hit his irons pure (3rd in approach), scrambled like a magician when he missed greens (75% scrambling), and putted just well enough not to hurt himself. He missed 45% of his fairways. He gained less than a stroke putting for the entire tournament. And he won in a playoff against Hideki Matsuyama, sinking a 27-footer when it mattered most.

This is the “a little bit of this and a little bit of that” approach to golf, and it might be the most realistic path to better scores for the majority of golfers.

Gotterup hit only 55% of his fairways at TPC Scottsdale. That’s T46 in the field. But he gained over four strokes off the tee because he absolutely nuked it, and when he missed, he missed in places where he could still advance the ball.

Here’s the practical takeaway: Stop trying to hit every fairway. Instead, focus on two things: distance and miss pattern.

Action steps: Spend one range session figuring out your natural shot shape and commit to it. If you fade the ball, aim down the left side and let it drift. Track where you miss for three rounds. If you’re missing left, tee it on the left side of the box and aim further right. The goal isn’t perfection. It’s avoiding the truly dead spots (water, OB, trees you can’t advance from) while maximizing distance.

Gotterup scrambled on 75% of his missed greens. That’s the stat that saved his week when the putter went cold on Friday and Saturday. He got up and down 15 times out of 20 chances.

Most amateurs practice their driver and putter religiously but completely ignore the 50-100 yard range. This is backwards. These shots save rounds.

Action steps: Next time you practice, hit exactly zero drivers. Instead, spend 45 minutes hitting pitch shots from 40, 60, 80 and 100 yards. Use different clubs. Hit some high, some low, some spinny, some that release. Get comfortable being uncomfortable. Then go to the practice bunker and don’t leave until you hole one. The confidence you build from knowing you can get up and down will change how you play aggressive approach shots.

Gotterup lost 0.619 strokes putting for the week. He wasn’t draining everything. But he made the ones that mattered: a 27-footer to win in playoff, a 3-footer for birdie on 18 in regulation, and enough mid-rangers to keep rounds alive.

The lesson? You don’t need to be a putting wizard. You need to be solid from 3-6 feet and occasionally make a long one.

Action steps: Forget the 40-footers. Build a practice routine around two distances: 4 feet (make 10 in a row from four different angles before you leave) and 20-25 feet (hit 10 putts and focus only on speed, trying to leave everything within 3 feet). This covers your “don’t three-putt” game and your “make one when you need it” game.

Gotterup didn’t try to become a putting savant between Friday and Sunday. He said in his press conference: “I just wanted to come out here today and at least feel like I was confident in what I was doing.”

He leaned into what he does well (crush it, hit great irons, scramble) and managed what he doesn’t (putting, accuracy off the tee). That’s a recipe anyone can follow.

Action steps: Write down your two best skills and your two worst. For the next month, practice your best skills twice as much as your worst. This sounds backwards, but it’s not. Your strengths win you tournaments. Your weaknesses just need to not lose them.

Golf isn’t about being perfect everywhere. It’s about being great at a few things, good enough at most things, and clutch when the moment demands it. That’s the Gotterup formula, and it just won him his fourth PGA Tour title.