AUGUSTA, Georgia – What started as a distant dream became reality for Cameron Young at Augusta National on Saturday, as the golfer transformed an eight-stroke deficit into a share of the Masters Tournament lead heading into Sunday’s final round.
Young delivered the round of the day with a spectacular seven-under 65, vaulting him to 11-under par for the championship and earning a coveted spot in the final pairing alongside defending champion and world No. 2 Rory McIlroy.
The journey to this moment has been anything but quick for Young, whose professional career exemplifies persistence paying off.
Following seven second-place finishes across his initial 93 PGA Tour events, Young finally captured his maiden victory last August at the Wyndham Championship.
“It’s been a slow climb,” Young explained. “The hardest thing to do, I think, is develop some confidence when things aren’t going great. Through the middle of last year I was able to take some positives out of some average results and out of some close calls.”
“Now I feel just much more comfortable, I would say, than before. It’s hard to say exactly what it is, but I feel like it’s just been very small things over the course of the last year or so that have just built up some steam,” he added.
That momentum has accelerated dramatically in recent months.
Young earned his inaugural Ryder Cup selection last September, then delivered the performance of his career in March by claiming The Players Championship – golf’s fifth major in everything but name. His tournament-winning moment came via a thunderous 375-yard drive on the final hole at TPC Sawgrass, edging out Matt Fitzpatrick for the title.
“I said it, I think in my press conference afterward, that really what I was trying to do was get ready to be playing late on Sunday at Augusta,” Young reflected.
“Now I’m here with what will be a late tee time on Sunday at Augusta, and that’s the best prep I could have asked for.
“I’ll try to run much the same process, same mindset as I did that day.”
Young’s Masters week has showcased remarkable mental fortitude and course management skills.
Despite struggling to four-over par through his opening 11 holes of the tournament, he has since dominated the remaining 43 holes with a stunning 15-under performance.
Acknowledging Sunday’s challenge, Young recognizes that crowd support will heavily favor his playing partner McIlroy.
“I don’t get the sense I’ll be the fan favourite, but yeah, I feel like the support, some fans that cheer for me have gotten louder over the last year,” Young noted.
“It will still be lopsided, I think. Rory’s kind of a world favourite in the golf world.”
