Chris Gotterup Conquers the Genesis Scottish Open, Outdueling McIlroy
In an exciting day in North Berwick, Scotland, Chris Gotterup demonstrated his skill by signing a card of 66 strokes, four under par, securing the victory at the Genesis Scottish Open. His stellar performance allowed him to surpass Northern Irishman Rory McIlroy.
Gotterup finished the tournament with an impressive total of 265 strokes, 15 under par, surpassing by two strokes McIlroy and Englishman Marco Penge, who shared second place at The Renaissance Club.
This victory represents Gotterup’s second triumph on the PGA Tour, and guarantees him a place in the upcoming The Open Championship.
Penge finished with a round of 66 strokes, while McIlroy recorded 68.
McIlroy, seeking his second title in three years, momentarily led the tournament after achieving consecutive birdies on holes four and five. However, after a birdie on the 8th hole, he couldn’t make any more birdies in the last ten holes.
Dane Nicolai Hojgaard (64) and Englishman Matt Fitzpatrick (67) shared fourth place with a total of 12 under par.
Gotterup consolidated his lead thanks to four consecutive birdies between holes seven and twelve. He maintained a two-stroke lead until the 15th hole, where a shot in the rough resulted in a bogey.
But on the next hole, Gotterup responded with a ten-foot birdie, regaining a two-stroke lead.
The best round of the day was for Englishman Justin Rose, who with 63 strokes climbed to sixth place with 11 under par, one stroke ahead of Austrian Sepp Straka (67).
The world number one, Scottie Scheffler, finished in a tie for eighth place with 9 under par, after recording his second round of 67 strokes in the tournament.
The defending champion, Robert MacIntyre, from Scotland, had a round of 71 strokes, repeating his performance in the tournament and finishing in 65th place with 2 over par.
Due to the weather conditions, mainly fog, the tee times were moved up and the golfers competed in groups of three.
