Low GPU usage

What is your cpu load at when you have that gpu %

In most cases bad GPU load is due to overload on a cpu thread. So what CPU do you have? Do you have the latest BIOS for both the motherboard and the graphicscard? Try running virtual super resolution and just crank everything up to see if GPU usage goes up, just to see if the GPU is working hard if the CPU throttling is at minimum.

EDIT: Also try running this benchmark tool as it barely utilizes the CPU.

Also, don't forget to update your graphics card bios. http://www.techpowerup.com/vgabios/ Make sure to make a backup! Each manufacturer have their own bios.

Download something like MSI Afterburner and put up the resource monitor in a separate window. After playing GTA for about 5 mins or so, just alt+tab or quit. Check the graphs for CPU usage over the cores. You're on an overclocked Ivy, sure it could bottleneck in some occasions but it just doesn't seem very likely to me.

Well if it sits at 100% for a second or longer that seems to indicate that it's bottleknecking your gpu. BF3 shouldn't be so heavy so it seems kinda weird. Are you sure it's running at 4,2Ghz at all times? Also, any temp issues=? I doubt a bios flash would improve anything.

He already said so, Ivy i5 @ 4,2Ghz.

There have been some very similar issues for some people that used old BIOS versions on other MB chipsets, I have never heard of it for the Z97 chipset though but it is certainly a possibility. They could get extremely low GPU usage and it was solved with a MB Bios update. OP really should try a MB bios update, it is not difficult at all and only takes a couple of minutes.

For some reason I thought you had a 4690k and a z97 MB but that most have been some other thread. Anyhow, it is not a question of experience just incredibly bad luck. Things like power shortages etc. What MB do you have more specifically?

As long as you follow the instructions and do it from uefi or similar it's almost fail proof. Bad usb drive or power outage is more or less the only chance for it to go wrong.

http://eu.msi.com/support/mb/Z77AS01.html#down-bios

There you go. Reading the changelogs they have added GPU compatability so I am almost certain this will solve it.

EDIT: Relevant video

There are also instructions in the download.

Are you 100% sure that your overclock is good? Try removing it and check if things improve.

Only GPU overclock can cause unstable performance, CPU overclock causes miscalculations and therefor crashes, not bad performance.

First of all try updating you BIOS if you do not have the latest version already, primarily MB but also Graphics card. That is always the first thing to do if there is any problem with hardware. MB get better compatability with each update most often, but sometimes the shipped VGA BIOS is faulty. That was the case with for example Asus 290x DCUII.

MB bios is easy to find, VGA can be harder. I recommend looking here http://www.techpowerup.com/vgabios/
Just make sure to make a backup of the VGA bios. Most likely though it is the MB bios and not the VGA bios, but updating your VGA bios is almost always a good thing anyhow, as long as things don't go wrong during the installation phase.

Also, I don't even need to ask this probably but you do have the latest drivers right? Try beta drivers.