Cameron Young retains lead at PGA Tour’s Wyndham Championship

GREENSBORO, N.C. — Cameron Young ran off 4 straight birdies on the entrance 9 and stretched his result in eight photographs Saturday earlier than he settled right into a collection of pars for a 5-under 65, giving him a five-shot lead within the Wyndham Championship as he goes for his first PGA Tour victory.

Young capped a bogey-free 65 within the storm-delayed second spherical within the morning. Then he stretched his lead together with his 4 straight birdies, together with a 30-footer on No. 4 and a two-putt birdie from 20 toes on the par-5 fifth.

“Just played some really nice golf there for about an hour,” Young stated. “Had some opportunities on the back nine, too, just didn’t make as many putts. But kind of cruised along with hitting some average shots through the middle of the round, and nice to finish up the way I did.”

Nico Echavarria of Colombia reduce the margin to 4 photographs with three birdies in a four-hole stretch on the again 9. A last birdie gave him a 64.

Young, who had gone 39 straight holes and not using a bogey at Sedgefield Country Club till lacking a 6-foot sliding par putt on the 14th gap, responded with a stupendous lag for a two-putt birdie on the par-5 fifteenth, and a 10-foot birdie on the seventeenth to place the lead at 5.

“I’m just going to worry about what I’m doing. As I said, try to hit the best shots I can and try to hole the putts and we’ll add it up after 18,” Echavarria stated.

Young is broadly thought-about the perfect participant to by no means have received on a fundamental tour, a runner-up seven instances since his rookie season in 2021. That features a World Golf Championship and extra notably the 2022 Open Championship at St. Andrews.

“I finished second a bunch. I’ve gotten beat a lot. I’ve played some good golf on Sunday in really all those cases,” Young stated. “So that’s all I’m trying to do tomorrow. I’m starting in a nice spot, so I’m just looking to try to beat second place by as many as I can.”

He was at 20-under 190, needing a 67 on Sunday to set the event scoring document. What issues to Young is a PGA Tour title, particularly now together with his final aim of being on the Ryder Cup group at Bethpage Black.

He was No. 9 within the Ryder Cup standings in 2023 and left off the group.

Young grew up in New York at Sleepy Hollow, the place his father was the longtime head professional. He had this Ryder Cup circled the day the PGA of America introduced it was going to the Long Island public course.

A win would solely transfer him to No. 15, however it will actually put him within the dialog together with his energy and historical past at Bethpage. He turned the primary beginner to win the New York State Open in 2017, setting a course document on the time with a 64 at Bethpage Black.

“That’s been a goal this whole year,” Young stated. “I’m trying to just look at that to just take all the small stuff that happens day-to-day as it comes. In the back of my mind trying to picture myself on that team.”

Echavarria was the one participant inside eight photographs of Young.

Defending champion Aaron Rai (69), Chris Kirk (67) and Mac Meissner (70) had been tied for third.

Kirk is at No. 73 within the FedEx Cup standings. The Wyndham Championship is the ultimate occasion within the common season and determines the highest 70 who advance to the profitable PGA Tour postseason that begins subsequent week in Memphis, Tennessee.

Davis Thompson (No. 78) was in a tie for seventh. Gary Woodland, enormously widespread as he returns from mind surgical procedure almost two years in the past, is at No. 75 within the standings. He shot 70 and was tied for ninth, leaving him proper on the bubble of advancing to the FedEx Cup playoffs.

One of the most important strikes got here Saturday morning. Matti Schmid is No. 70 within the FedEx Cup and was two photographs over the reduce line. But he performed his final six holes in 5-under par for a 65 and shot 68 within the afternoon. He was in a tie for thirteenth.

Also nonetheless with an outdoor likelihood are Danish twins Nicolai and Rasmus Hojgaard, who’re at No. 71 and No. 82, respectively. Both completed 36 holes at 3-under 137 and figured they might miss the reduce. But the reduce dropped from 4 underneath to three underneath.

Rasmus Hojgaard shot 41 on the again 9 after teeing off at No. 10 within the third spherical, after which shot 29. Nicolai Hojgaard shot 38, after which had a 31 on the entrance 9. Both want a low one Sunday, however they did not shoot themselves fully out of it.