Chris Gotterup earns big reward after beating Rory McIlroy to win the Genesis Scottish Open

Chris Gotterup secured his second PGA Tour title at the 2025 Genesis Scottish Open, holding off Rory McIlroy and a strong field at The Renaissance Club. The American shot a final-round 66 to finish at 15-under par, winning by two strokes over McIlroy.

The win came with huge rewards. Gotterup earned $1.575 million in prize money and a debut spot in The Open Championship at Royal Portrush next week. Ranked 158th in the world, he wasn’t inside the top 50 to qualify directly, but secured one of three Open spots available through the Open Qualifying Series at the Scottish Open.

The other two spots went to Nicolai Højgaard and Matti Schmid. Højgaard surged with a final-round 64 to climb 11 spots and finish tied for fourth, earning his place alongside twin brother Rasmus at Royal Portrush. Schmid finished tied for 17th after a closing 71, taking advantage of Jake Knapp’s late collapse.

Knapp, who briefly shared the lead early Sunday, fell out of contention with a double bogey on the par-3 ninth and stumbled to a 74, missing both the title and a chance to play in the year’s final major.

Chris Gotterup reflects on holding off Rory McIlroy for Scottish Open win

Chris Gotterup stayed consistent throughout the week with rounds of 68, 61, and 70 to stay near the top of the leaderboard. In the final round, he overcame a shaky start with a bogey on the 1st hole but quickly recovered. Birdies on the 3rd, 7th, and 8th holes saw him turn in 2-under. On the back nine, Gotterup added birdies on the 10th, 12th, and 16th, offset by a bogey at the 15th, to close with a 4-under 66. He finished at 15-under 265.

After his victory, Chris Gotterup admitted how much it meant to edge out one of golf’s biggest names. When asked about holding off Rory McIlroy and others chasing him on Sunday, he said during his press conference:

"I knew today was going to be a battle. I know, obviously, everyone knows that Rory is one of the best to ever do it. But, yeah, I'm happy I edged him out. But it wasn't going to be an easy day. There was a pretty bunch, I mean, there was a bunch of guys at 9, so I knew someone was going to do something. So, I just really settled in nicely to the round after the first hole and didn't really look back."

McIlroy also praised Chris Gotterup’s performance after finishing two shots behind him. The World No. 2 said:

"Chris played a great round of golf. He was so solid. Made the bogey on 15 but bounced back with a really nice birdie on 16. After he got a couple ahead, I just couldn't claw back."

For McIlroy, this was his best finish since his victory at the Masters, which completed his career Grand Slam. It also marked the first time he had been in serious contention since Augusta. Now, the Northern Irishman heads home for The Open Championship in Northern Ireland. He famously won the Major in 2014.