Chris Gotterup Makes Biggest FedExCup Leap of 2024
Chris Gotterup transformed from struggling rookie to Tour Championship contender, climbing an impressive 109 spots in the FedExCup standings this year.
The 26-year-old New Jersey native and former Oklahoma star, who was college golf’s national player of the year in 2022, turned his season around with a remarkable summer surge. After finishing 119th in last year’s FedExCup standings, Gotterup tied for 10th at East Lake, completing the largest year-over-year improvement of any player on Tour.
Gotterup’s path wasn’t smooth early on. He missed seven of his first 10 cuts and sat at 134th in FedExCup points in late March. By July, he’d only climbed to 88th when he headed to Scotland. That’s when everything changed.
He outdueled Rory McIlroy to win the Genesis Scottish Open, then followed it with a solo third at the Open Championship. Those two weeks completely changed the trajectory of his season and career.
Bud Cauley posted the second-biggest improvement, jumping 105 spots in the standings. Jacob Bridgeman (+86), Garrick Higgo (+82) and Harry Higgs (+77) rounded out the top five climbers, though Higgs couldn’t quite save his card, finishing 132nd in points.
On the flip side, several notable players took significant steps backward. Brendon Todd experienced the steepest decline, falling 156 spots to 228th. Matthieu Pavon dropped 154 places, tumbling from 17th to 171st. Sahith Theegala, hampered by injuries throughout the season, fell 143 spots from 3rd to 146th.
Here’s a look at the movement of all 188 players who appeared in both the 2023 and 2024 final FedExCup standings:
