In 2025, Charlie Woods finished tied for 31st. Now, a year later, in 2026, he returns. While it was a decent score, he closed with his best score of the week. And who could forget his hole-in-one on the par-three third hole in front of a big crowd at TPC Sawgrass? Now, a year later, he’s back in the same AJGA invitational on a sponsor exemption. This time, though, things are different because he has had a very poor season so far.
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“Charlie Woods is playing in the Junior Players this week on a sponsor’s invite. Mom Elin out following him today as he played with TaylorMade execs. Will be tough to top last year’s ace at No. 3,” Adam Schupak updated via an X post.
The 20th Junior Players (September 4-6, TPC Sawgrass) features 78 juniors, including 15 from the top 25 AJGA. Charlie tees off Round 1 at 8:50 a.m. ET from the 10th.
He’ll look to prove himself after a heartbreaking 2026 season. So far this year, he has had several missed cuts. At the U.S. Junior Amateur, Charlie opened with a 76, then posted a 70, but lost a 14-for-2 playoff. The same happened at the 2026 Junior PGA Championship. After making the 36-hole cut with 75-70, he shot 77 in round three and missed the 54-hole cut.
The worst of it all came at the Junior Invitational 2026, also known as the Junior Masters. In a field of 36 golfers, Charlie Woods finished the event last. But it wasn’t just the crushing last-place finish. He finished 10 strokes behind second-to-last. He had carded rounds of 75-76-83-80 to finish 26-over 314.
He even missed qualifying for the US Open. He failed to qualify for the U.S. Open at Shinnecock Hills. Instead, he caddied for Miles Russell, who secured a spot in the 2026 US Open.
Unlike him, many of his peers had an exceptional season. Miles Russell, for instance, didn’t just qualify for the U.S. Open but finished tied for 39th place. While this may not be a great number for a professional, achieving this as a junior golfer is impressive. He also won the Junior Invitational at Sage Valley, where Charlie Woods finished last. Russell was also a medalist at the Western Amateur and the U.S. Junior Amateur (co-medalist).
For Charlie Woods, the Junior Players Championship presents another chance to turn his season around. After a series of disappointing results and missed opportunities, he will hope to rediscover the form that helped him finish tied for 31st last year.