A 17th hole birdie and holding his composure on the 18th to secure the title, Cameron Young proved he can perform under intense pressure. No one saw him coming until he was sitting next to Matt Fitzpatrick at the top of the leaderboard. And Young’s mental coach commended him for having the grit to overcome the threat and come out on top in the end.

Speaking to Golfweek, Dr. Bhrett McCabe told Adam Schupak, “What I saw was a master class of the mental game of staying present in the moment. He was pretty low in belief, struggling like guys do. And we just got back to some basic processes. It was just an evolution.”

Young was four strokes away from Aberg at the end of 54 holes. He had just come off an average round of even par. The two-time PGA Tour champion needed to cover a huge deficit on Championship Sunday if he wanted to win the title.

Interestingly, he wasn’t in contention until he had completed the front 9. Young had only managed a 1-under par after 9 holes by scoring two birdies and a bogey. With the top of the leaderboard continuously changing, the chances of him winning the tournament were slowly slipping away.

However, he managed to score three birdies in the back 9 to give himself an excellent shot. The last one came on the iconic par-3 17th hole, where the likes of Brooks Koepka have also struggled. But with one stroke separating him from Fitzpatrick, Young hit an excellent drive that landed 10 feet away from the hole. From then on, he had to rely purely on luck.

His English opponent needed a birdie to grab an outright win, a par to push for a playoff. However, Fitzpatrick scored a bogey on the 18th to fall out of contention. In the end, Young’s perseverance helped him triumph and cash the $4.5 million paycheck.

With the PLAYERS Championship win under his belt, he has already set his sights on his next goal. And it’s not to win a title.

Cameron Young eyes another strong performance at Augusta National

This year, Cameron Young will be making his fifth appearance in the Masters Tournament. His last four attempts have been a roller-coaster ride on the leaderboard.

Young missed the cut during his first visit to Augusta National in 2022. He followed that up with a T7 finished in 2023. A year later, he grabbed another strong finish with a T9. Around 11 months ago, the 28-year-old made his fourth appearance in the tournament only to miss the cut once again.

Interestingly, neither of his previous attempts in the major event was as a PGA Tour winner. Since the 2025 Masters Tournament, he has won two titles. He also made his first Ryder Cup appearance to represent Team U.S.

Despite achieving so much, Young’s goal for the 2026 Masters Tournament isn’t to wear the Green Jacket on Sunday. But it’s to play well till the evening of the fourth round.

Young told the media, “My goal is to be prepared to be playing late on Sunday at Augusta. It’s not necessarily to win; it’s not to do any certain number of things; it’s to be ready and comfortable when that moment comes.”

With only a few weeks left for the first major of the season, he’s setting realistic expectations already. Considering the challenging greens of Augusta National, performing well will help him finish well in the tournament. And if he’s able to maintain his composure, then Young might also end up winning his first major this year.