Back on the PGA Tour
Few people understand the highs and lows of life as a professional golfer more than Dormie Ambassador Scott Gutschewski.
Which explains why a recent video of the journeyman golfer — overcome with emotion during an interview after he earned his 2021-22 PGA Tour card — went internet viral.
“Gootch,” as he is known, last played a full season on the PGA Tour in 2011. In the decade since, he’s appeared in just two PGA Tour events, instead spending most of his time grinding away on the Korn Ferry Tour, while also undergoing foot surgery three times. From 2014 to 2016, he was only able to play in one Korn Ferry event.
Yet in late August 2021, a healthy Gootch tied for 18th in the Nationwide Children’s Hospital Championship on the Scarlet Course at Ohio State University in Columbus, Ohio, propelled by a clutch, Sunday 67. His top-20 finish placed him among the top 25 point-getters in the playoffs and allowed Gootch to earn a PGA Tour card for the season.
“Emotions,” he said immediately after learning the news, repeating part of the interviewer’s question. Then came a lengthy pause as he tried to keep the tears in check. “Not sure,” he said. “It’s hard. It’s hard. Everybody keeps getting younger. It’s hard. That’s about all I can say.
“When I was younger, I was always way too aggressive. Now I have to battle being too conservative. At the end of the day, I knew I was playing well. It was just a matter of getting the rest and recovery back in, and then coming out and playing well again. The amount of thoughts that go through your head out there are unreal. Unreal.”
His emotion captured the hearts of golf aficionados. As did the fact that he and his wife, Amy, the parents of four children, celebrated his accomplishment with a night-out at Denny’s. “It ain’t Applebee’s, but still pretty fancy,” the Omaha, Nebraska native tweeted.
Later, following a week of downtime and before heading back out to chase his destiny against the world’s best golfers, Gootch was able to put the rewards of patience and persistence in better perspective.
“Getting my PGA Tour card back is why we do what we do,” he said. “Just sticking with it and knowing that I’m good enough and believing that making consistent good decisions would lead to good golf and that could lead to a PGA Tour card. I have a lot of work to do to keep the momentum going and continue the journey. But I’m looking forward to it and there is nothing else I would rather be doing.”
Meanwhile, Gootch and Amy are also experiencing life as golf parents. Their oldest child, Luke, is a freshman on the Iowa State golf team, while daughter Isabelle is a 16-year-old high school standout on the Duchesne Academy (Omaha) squad. “Once I figure out how to be in two places at once, I’ll need to be in three!” he tweeted on a day when Luke was competing in the Big 12 Conference match play at the same time Isabelle was teeing it up at the high school state championship.
“I guess I’m most proud of just doing it my way and sticking to it,” he said. “Still finding time to spend time with my family and be a dad. Sticking to my game plan and trusting that it was the best chance for me to be successful.”
Gootch said one of the year’s highlights came the day after the Korn Ferry Tour Championship at Victoria National, when General Manager Ron Philo put out some golf carts for Gootch and his family to play the golf course. “We were all drained from an emotional weekend,” he said. “I kind of bowed out of the round after 10. I was drained.
“My kids had a great time playing, but were also getting a little tired. So, I challenged my 16-year-old, Isabelle and 14-year-old, Trevor, to play ‘The Gauntlet’ (holes 14-18) in even par or better to get ice cream.
“They did it and I still owe them the ice cream,” he said. “Guess I better pay up soon!”
Gootch said being a Dormie Ambassador has been one of the fun parts of his recent success.
“It’s been a pleasure to be partnered with Dormie Network,” he said. “They are a first-class organization with service and facilities second to none. It’s great to be an ambassador and consistently hear about the great experiences guests and members have at the Dormie Network properties.”
Now, as he tackles his second PGA Tour stint, the 45-year-old realizes he will be among the oldest of the 50 players in this year’s qualifying class. Nevertheless, he’s intent on sticking to the plan and keeping the faith.
“I’m just really excited to be out on the PGA Tour again,” he said. “Obviously, keeping my card would be a good year, but just enjoying myself and keeping a positive attitude would be great.
“I do think I will appreciate things a little more this time around. Seeing a lot of old friends, seeing how much the tour has changed. Going back to some great courses, and just the opportunity to play against the best players in the world!”
Heading into the holidays, Gootch described his start to the 2021–22 season as “okay” so far after making two out of three cuts and missing the third by one shot.
"You always feel like it could be a little better. It’s always a little tough getting starts early in the year out of the Korn Ferry category. It’s great, but you start at the bottom of the priority list, so starts can come sporadically. It’s important to stay as prepared as possible, but everyone has had a really long year and everyone is ready for a little down time at home. I’m looking forward to finishing the fall strong and having a little downtime with the family for the holidays!"
