Cameron Young won his first PGA Tour title at last summer’s Wyndham Championship, becoming the 1,000th unique winner in circuit history in his fourth season as a card member. This win came three years after he emerged in a highly anticipated rookie season, but it was natural to wonder if Young might have been better off with less success as a rookie.
At first glance, it’s a ridiculous puzzle (no, not the rapper who started the festivities at TPC Sawgrass over the weekend). Young’s 2022 rookie campaign was one of the most memorable in recent years. The powerful right-hander racked up seven podium finishes and earned Rookie of the Year honors.
He fell a few strokes short at Riviera, was one stroke out of the playoffs of Will Zalatoris and Justin Thomas at the PGA Championship, and was one stroke short of Cameron Smith at the 150th British Open at St. Andrews. Young was also a member of the U.S. Presidents Cup team that won at Quail Hollow that fall.
The close call was supposed to serve as a learning experience – that was enough, and trophies would surely start falling into his hands.
Instead, Young learned there’s more to a close call than that.
They are heartbreaking. They have bad memories. And in Young’s case, they had expectations that he would be a consistent major championship contender and a regular winner on the PGA Tour.
Expectations can come from many sources, including the media, colleagues, fans, family, and friends, but only the expectations that come from within are important. The man in the mirror is the final judge.
Young said earlier this week that expectations have been placed on him over the course of his career, calling the expectations he once placed on himself “very unreasonable.”
Mr. Young recently decided to make a fresh start. He decided to ground himself, stay in the present moment, remove important goals and just go play golf.
By letting go of his own expectations and shattering that mirror, Young was able to live up to them on Sunday with a dramatic victory over Matt Fitzpatrick at the 2026 Players Championship. In doing so, he proved that his initial expectations were justified.
“I think I’m pretty hard on myself in general, and I think a lot of people who are good at themselves expect a lot of themselves,” Young said. “So I think that expectation also drives you to be better, even though it might not be the best thing to do to perform at the highest level.
“I’m starting to learn to let go of that a little bit and just focus on my foot position. But at the same time, I expect a lot more from myself in terms of preparing and working on golf shots and working on my thought process. I think shifting to where expectations are higher is probably what works better for me.”
Going into Sunday’s final round, it was expected that 36- and 54-hole leader Ludwig Oberg would cross the finish line. Despite Pete Dye’s diabolical design being loaded with trick after trick, the Swedish superstar made it through the front nine on the TPC Sawgrass without breaking a sweat.
Oberg – another player who had high expectations but was finally able to live up to them – was two hours away from his coronation. He arrived at the center of the fairway on the par-5 11th hole with a two-stroke lead over Young and others, and hit his second shot into the water.
After carding a six and returning to the field, the robotic right-hander broke down again, sending his tee ball into the drink on the short par-4 12th. The lack of electricity resulted in a quick swing, and six more points were added to the scorecard. He only scored six or more points twice all week.
Oberg threw the tournament door wide open. Young and Fitzpatrick stood at the entrance, which had room for only one person to march. An earlier version of Young might not have jumped into a position like this. He struggled with anger when things didn’t go his way, especially breaking his driver in the homestretch of the 2024 Rocket Classic and getting in his way multiple times.
“This is new in a way. This is the closest I’ve come to the lead with a few holes left,” Young said. “I’ve probably been in the top one or two times. I didn’t think anything of it. … It’s just something I learned over time, not necessarily from individual instances where I was near the lead. We’ve made huge strides in our attitude and our approach to golf, and I feel like that’s where I’ve grown. And I think that’s why I was able to stay there all day today.”
“Certainly there were moments during the front nine where I didn’t know if I was in the back three or the back four. If I got frustrated and made an unwise decision at that point, I would have been kicked out of the tournament right away. So I feel like it’s more of a matter of what I’ve learned over the last year or two and not necessarily from when I was leading.”
Once Fitzpatrick found his form, there were hopes that he might become the first Briton to win the PGA Tour’s flagship event. A former U.S. Amateur champion, U.S. Open champion, and winner of this fall’s DP World Tour Championship, Fitzpatrick’s resume is worthy of The Players Champion.
With two holes left, it looked like Fitzpatrick would get the job done…until Young stepped onto the 17th tee. After a 57-degree sand wedge to within 10 feet, Young made an early birdie putt to take the lead, dripping like molasses over the rim of the cup.
The longest drive of the Shotlink era, on the par-4 18th (375 yards) at TPC Sawgrass, came on the next full swing. Another clever wedge accessed an awkward back pin position with a 20 mph wind at his back, adding to what can only be described as an uncomfortable sensation. The tournament-winning par putt was quickly determined. My expectations suddenly returned.
“It’s a tough game and there’s a lot of guys who are really good at it,” Young said. “I’m not very good at setting goals. I’ve accomplished my goals. I don’t have a list for this year or anything. On my mind for the second half of last season was Eastlake, Ryder Cup.”
“My first feeling this season is to prepare for the Masters, so my goal is to play as many matches as possible before then. This tournament definitely has a major feel to it. The Players is an incredible event. If anything, I feel like it’s the best possible preparation for the first major of the season.”
The past two Players champions coincidentally followed suit wearing the green jacket. Those men were none other than Scottie Scheffler and Rory McIlroy. They are the top two players in the world who have been burdened with high expectations for many years.
Given Young’s current form and history at Augusta National (two top-10s in four outings), he will inevitably be a player to watch in the weeks leading up to the season’s first major championship. The expectation is for him to compete and possibly win, but don’t tell that to Young. Because he doesn’t have it and wouldn’t want it any other way.
