Chris Gotterup's meteoric rise to the top of the PGA Tour - ESPN

PEBBLE BEACH, Calif. — The first time Chris Gotterup played Pebble Beach Golf Links, it was a reward from his father for breaking par for the first time.

The 13-year-old had carded a 2-under 69 at Rumson Country Club in New Jersey, and a trip to the famed course on the Monterey Peninsula with his father and brother was his prize.

On Thursday, Gotterup, now 26, will tee off as one of the favorites in the 80-man pro field in the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am, the first signature event of the PGA Tour season.

After collecting his second victory in three starts this season by defeating Hideki Matsuyama on the first playoff hole in last week's WM Phoenix Open, Gotterup is the fifth-ranked golfer in the world. He's the second highest-ranked American, behind only world No. 1 Scottie Scheffler.

Gotterup's four victories in the past four seasons are more than any other golfer on tour except Scheffler and reigning Masters champion Rory McIlroy. Gotterup has won three times in his past 10 starts dating to last year.

«I'm just trying to keep my head on straight and not get too over my skis,» Gotterup said

How meteoric has Gotterup's rise been the past two seasons? Last year, he didn't even qualify for the Pebble Beach field as the 206th-ranked golfer in the world.

Scheffler, whose 20 career victories on tour includes four major championships, stood behind Gotterup in the lunch line at Pebble Beach earlier this week.

«I'm just going to eat what you're eating,» Scheffler joked.

«He's doing pretty good on his own, so I'm not too worried about him,» said Gotterup, who also won the season-opening Sony Open in Hawaii by two strokes on Jan. 18.

Gotterup's talent was evident during his only season at Oklahoma in 2021-22. He had a scoring average