GREENSBORO, N.C. – Cameron Young took the lead at the Wyndham Championship with an outstanding performance. The golfer achieved two consecutive birdies, surpassing the defending champion, Aaron Rai. The excitement intensified when Young placed his tee shot on the 16th hole at just 6 feet, at which point the storms forced a halt to the game. The second round would resume at 7:30 a.m. on Saturday, and the third round would be played in groups of three, starting on both sides of the course at Sedgefield Country Club. Young, recognized as one of the best players who has yet to win in a major tournament, has been close on several occasions, including seven second places on the PGA Tour, such as at the British Open in St. Andrews. At this moment, Young is at a total of 14 under par. For his part, Rai, who won his first PGA Tour title at the Wyndham Championship last year, is at 13 under par, after missing the green on the 14th hole. Mac Meissner, with an impressive round of 63 strokes, and Sungjae Im, with 64 strokes, achieved a total of 12 under par. Mark Hubbard, with 66 strokes, was one stroke behind. The Wyndham Championship is the last tournament of the regular season, where the top 70 players will advance to the lucrative postseason. The cut after 36 holes is shaping up at 4 under par, or possibly 3 under par if conditions worsen. This could mean the end of the season for players like Adam Hadwin and Zach Johnson. Max Homa, with 1 under par and five holes to play, needed birdies to have a chance to advance to the playoffs. Adam Scott, in 85th place in the FedEx Cup, was at 4 under par on the 15th hole. Young, at 40th in the FedEx Cup standings, is playing in Greensboro with the goal of achieving his ambitious goals. His main focus is to reach the Tour Championship and earn points for the Ryder Cup. Young, with roots in New York, has the Ryder Cup in his sights, especially since it will be played at Bethpage Black on Long Island. Even with a win this week, Young could move up to 15th in the rankings. The top six automatically qualify in three weeks, after the BMW Championship.
Meissner, in 152nd place, needs to win to advance. In addition, he seeks to finish in the top 100 in the fall events to keep his card. Gary Woodland starred in the shot of the day, with a 7-iron on the 5th hole that resulted in an albatross (2 strokes). He finished with 64 strokes and could have a chance to advance to the postseason with a good week at Sedgefield.For me, it’s not necessarily about this week. I have a goal. By mid-September I would like to be in New York playing on that Ryder Cup team. If I can achieve that, I can achieve many things in these next four weeks. So I’m trying to keep that in mind instead of the small things along the way. It’s not that winning a tournament here is little, but I think for me, looking at the distance that way I think will help me continue to trust what I’m doing and build confidence along the way.
Cameron Young
I’ve been playing well for a while, and Randy Smith, my coach, has been urging me to be patient, to try to make the required shot and to have fun. When you don’t get the results you want, that’s probably the hardest part of having a little fun. I’m in a much better place than a year ago, so I try to enjoy it a little. It was nice to see some go in today.
Gary Woodland
