SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. — The 2026 WM Phoenix Open delivered on its reputation for drama, culminating in a thrilling playoff victory for Chris Gotterup over Hideki Matsuyama at TPC Scottsdale’s Stadium Course. Gotterup, who also won the season-opening Sony Open in Hawaii, secured his second PGA Tour title of the season with a clutch birdie putt on the first playoff hole.
Matsuyama, seeking his third WM Phoenix Open title (having previously won in 2016 and 2017), entered Sunday with a one-stroke lead. Despite struggling with his driver on the front nine – failing to find a fairway – he maintained his position at the top of the leaderboard, carding a two-under 33 on the front nine and holding a one-shot advantage over Si Woo Kim and Michael Thorbjornsen.
The back nine witnessed a furious charge from several contenders. Scottie Scheffler made birdies on holes 13, 14, 15, and 17 to move within one stroke of Matsuyama. Simultaneously, Gotterup ignited his round with a remarkable run of five birdies in six holes, including birdies on 13, 14, 15, 17, and 18, to post a 16-under total. Thorbjornsen briefly seized the lead with an eagle on the 15th, but a subsequent bogey on the 16th brought him back into contention. Matsuyama responded with a birdie on the 15th, only to see Thorbjornsen drop another shot at the 17th, leaving Matsuyama needing to par the final three holes to secure the win.
However, the 18th hole proved decisive. Matsuyama’s tee shot landed in a bunker, and his attempt to escape the bunker came up short, leading to a bogey. This forced a playoff with Gotterup, marking the fifth playoff in the last eight years at the WM Phoenix Open.
The playoff was short-lived. Gotterup delivered a powerful drive, while Matsuyama’s tee shot sailed left, hitting a pole supporting a gallery rope and ricocheting into the water. Gotterup then calmly sank a long birdie putt to claim the victory. “You never know what to expect,” Gotterup said. “We went over to the first tee, hit a couple balls, was watching, and then all of a sudden you’re out there on 18 and everyone is going nuts and you’re like, all right, this is it.”
Gotterup closed with a 7-under 64, bringing his tournament total to 16-under 268, matching Matsuyama’s score. He attributed his late surge to a renewed focus on his putting stroke. “I didn’t change anything. I just was maybe more intentional with what I was doing. Nothing different other than just making sure that I was confident in what I was doing,” he explained. “I didn’t think this would happen, especially after Friday and Saturday. But here we are.”
Matsuyama, visibly disappointed, acknowledged his struggles off the tee. “I wanted to avoid the playoff as much as I could, but I just hit a bad tee shot there in regulation at 18,” he said through an interpreter.
Scottie Scheffler, Nicolai Hojgaard, Akshay Bhatia, Si Woo Kim, and Michael Thorbjornsen finished in a tie for third place at 15-under. Scheffler’s strong finish highlighted his resilience, despite a challenging start to the final round.
2026 WM Phoenix Open Payout
WIN: Chris Gotterup, $1.728 million
2. Hideki Matsuyama, $1.0464 million
T3. Scottie Scheffler, $439,480
Nicolai Hojgaard, $439,480
Akshay Bhatia, $439,480
Si Woo Kim, $439,480
Michael Thorbjornsen, $439,480
8. Jake Knapp, $300,000
9. Matt Fitzpatrick, $280,800
T10. Viktor Hovland, $242,400
Ryo Hisatsune, $242,400
Pierceson Coody, $242,400
T13. Maverick McNealy, $188,000
Kevin Roy, $188,000
Zecheng Dou, $188,000
T16. Daniel Berger, $160,800
Jordan Smith, $160,800
T18. Rickie Fowler, $122,720
Michael Kim, $122,720
Jacob Bridgeman, $122,720
Sahith Theegala, $122,720
Sepp Straka, $122,720
Mac Meissner, $122,720
T24. Ryan Fox, $82,320
Rico Hoey, $82,320
Kurt Kitayama, $82,320
Rasmus Hojgaard, $82,320
T28. Harris English, $62,948
Nick Taylor, $62,948
A.J. Ewart, $62,948
Ben Griffin, $62,948
Mackenzie Hughes, $62,948
Min Woo Lee, $62,948
Stephan Jaeger, $62,948
T35. Sam Stevens, $46,800
Wyndham Clark, $46,800
Alex Smalley, $46,800
Tom Kim, $46,800
J.T. Poston, $46,800
John Parry, $46,800
T41. Xander Schauffele, $34,080
Keith Mitchell, $34,080
Cameron Young, $34,080
Rasmus Neegaard-Petersen, $34,080
Johnny Keefer, $34,080
Sami Valimaki, $34,080
Kristoffer Retian, $34,080
T48. Christo Lamprecht, $24,608
Chad Ramey, $24,608
Michael Brennan, $24,608
Max McGreevy, $24,608
Zach Bauchou, $24,608
S.T. Lee, $24,608
T54. Collin Morikawa, $22,272
S.H. Kim, $22,272
Joe Highsmith, $22,272
Brian Campbell, $22,272
Kensei Hirata, $22,272
Sudarshan Yellamaraju, $22,272
T60. Patrick Rodgers, $21,312
Adrien Saddier, $21,312
Takumi Kanaya, $21,312
John VanDerLaan, $21,312
T64. Gary Woodland, $20,736
Davis Thompson, $20,736
T66. Max Homa, $20,352
Chandler Phillips, $20,352
T68. Bud Cauley, $19,872
Hank Lebioda, $19,872
Neal Shipley, $19,872
71. Keita Nakajima, $19,488
72. Patton Kizzire, $19,296
73. Cam Davis, $19,104
