Chris Gotterup Becomes A Made Man In Hawaii, Patrick Reed Wants Back On Tour, And DeChambeau The Billionaire
Jersey's own wins on the island.
Chris Gotterup, you sir, have officially entered rarefied air. The gold-chain-wearing kid from New Jersey stormed back to win the Sony Open on Sunday for his third win on the PGA Tour, taking him out of that group of players who may be ‘next up’ to one who has officially arrived. If only Keegan Bradley could go back in time and put Gotterup on the U.S. Ryder Cup team last fall.
It wouldn't be a proper welcome week back for Par Talk if Patrick Reed wasn't involved. With the PGA Tour recently announcing a very narrow patch back for former members who jumped ship for LIV Golf, Reed wouldn't mind returning to "the best tour in the world." His words, not mine, but the timing is awfully convenient for P Reed.
LIV Golf's immediate future looks bleak, and Bryson DeChambeau, the man who holds all the leverage, could end up demanding a paycheck with three commas if the Saudis want him to stick around beyond 2026.
For those who may be new here, welcome to Par Talk, a weekly column where we look back at the week that was around the world of professional golf to keep you in the know. We also aren't short on opinion here. You can holler on X @itismarkharris or email at mark.harris@outkick.com.
Chris Gotterup Is Only Getting Started
Chris Gotterup certainly didn't enter the 2026 PGA Tour season flying under the radar as a two-time winner and a Top 30 player in the world, but to immediately come out of the gates and pick up a win in the year's first event sends a new message: the kid from New Jersey is a very real problem.
Gotterup earned his PGA Tour card ahead of the 2024 season. He went on to win the Myrtle Beach Classic in May of that year, stunningly won the Genesis Scottish Open in July 2025, and earned win No. 3 at this week's Sony Open. With at least one win in each of the last three PGA Tour seasons, Gotterup joined two fellas by the names of Scottie Scheffler and Rory McIlroy as the only players who can say they've accomplished the same.
Gotterup began Sunday's final round in Hawaii a couple of shots back from 54-hole leader Davis Riley, but put together a nearly flawless round of 64 to win by two strokes.
While Gotterup is a pretty quiet, reserved guy, his game very much is not, and it was flashing in every single aspect over the weekend. He has ridiculous power and led the field in strokes gained: driving, but he's also got the ability to hit any club in his bag through any window.
When you pair Gotterup's driving ability with a red-hot putter, which he had throughout the week in Hawaii, he can compete and beat the best players on the planet at any golf course on the planet. Three wins on three incredibly different golf courses, plus a solo third at last year's Open Championship shows that his game lacks any weaknesses.
With his win at the Sony Open, Gotterup is now ranked 17th in the world. He left last year's Sony Open ranked 195th after missing the cut; a meteoric rise indeed.
Patrick Reed Suddenly A PGA Tour Fan
With Brooks Koepka's surprise exit from LIV Golf and immediate return to the PGA Tour, it has sparked the discussion about what other former Tour players may be interested in a return. The Tour's Returning Member Program has specific criteria players must meet that Patrick Reed very much does not, but that hasn't stopped him from throwing his hat into the ring.
READ: PGA Tour’s ‘Brooks Koepka’ Reinstatement Policy Feels Aimed Squarely At Phil Mickelson
To Reed's credit, he has continued to make numerous starts on both the DP World Tour and Asian Tour since joining LIV in 2022. He's managed to juggle a globe-trotting schedule for multiple years now, so why not add PGA Tour stops to the mix?
"I'm already playing on three tours, why not add one more?" Reed told Golf Digest. "I always enjoyed my time out there on the PGA Tour. Let's be honest, out there, it's the best tour in the world. Look at what they've done in golf … I could see myself playing there at some point again. But right now, you just never know; everything's so fluid."
Patrick Reed wouldn't mind playing on the PGA Tour again. (Photo by Andrew Redington/Getty Images)
While Reed's comments were a bit tongue-in-cheek, they're still noteworthy given the Tour opening the door up for certain players to make a return. It's also awfully convenient for Reed to share these thoughts in 2026.
The former Masters champion would of course love to return to the Tour, having already cashed in millions and millions of dollars with LIV Golf, especially with the organization's immediate future uncertain with Koepka's exit and other key players having their contracts expire at the end of 2026.
Bryson's Billions?
There may not be an athlete in the history of sports who has more leverage than Bryson DeChambeau does when it comes to LIV Golf and its *entire* future.
Sure, the younger generation sees DeChambeau as a YouTube golfer who happens to contend in major championships on a consistent basis, but he has also long been the face of LIV Golf. He's also been incredibly blunt about the fact that he is only signed through 2026, which can't be music to the ears of the Saudis with the PGA Tour offering him a route back to the Tour.
Bryson's future is entirely up in the air. (Jim Dedmon-Imagn Images)
DeChambeau is committed to LIV through this season, but then what?
It's honestly pretty simple. DeChambeau can, and should, ask for whatever number he wants from LIV on a new contract, and the circuit has its hands tied to award it to him. That new number is rumored to be $500 million.
Greg Norman, who played a huge role in getting LIV Golf off the ground, thinks this could lead DeChambeau to become a billionaire, and rather quickly.
"I love it," Norman told The Times, referring to the current landscape in the sport. "It’s free agency. Brooks (Koepka) had an option to stay with LIV or go back to the PGA Tour. He’s an independent contractor who can go wherever he wants. Look at what is happening with Bryson… God bless him. I hope he becomes a billionaire out of it."
It's remarkable to admit, but if DeChambeau were to ink a $500 million contract, that $1 billion number is his for the taking. This is a guy who already signed a deal worth a few hundred million dollars to initially join LIV Golf, and a half-billion on top of that would propel him to having a truly obscene bank account.