In June, Charlie Woods walked every step beside Miles Russell, carrying the bag and sharing the grind of a 36-hole U.S. Open qualifier. The two moved in sync, close friends chasing the same goal, sharing an agent as two FSU commits, bound by a future that points to Florida State. But weeks later, the symmetry is gone.
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According to Golfweek, at just 17, Russell claimed both the Western Amateur medalist honors and the U.S. Junior Amateur, becoming the first player in history to achieve the feat in the same year. Fresh off a runner-up finish at Saucon Valley last week, he entered the Western Amateur match play as the No. 1 seed in one of the world’s most prestigious amateur events.
Match play began on Friday, with the championship set to conclude on Saturday afternoon. Before Russell, only four players had earned medalist honors at both the U.S. Junior Amateur and the Western Amateur: Sam Horsfield, Doug Martin, Willie Wood, and Bob Byman. But none had accomplished it in the same year.
Russell carded rounds of 67-67-64-65 to finish 72 holes at 21-under 263. He also posted the third-lowest medalist score since the championship went to 72 holes of stroke-play qualifying in 1955, edging senior Josiah Gilbert by one shot. He is also the second-youngest player to earn medalist honors in the 124th Western Amateur.
On the same day, Tiger Woods‘ son, Charlie Woods, suffered a disappointing setback. He missed the 54-hole cut at the 2026 Junior PGA Championship in Texas.
Charlie Woods entered the event hoping to bounce back after narrowly missing the match-play stage at the U.S. Junior Amateur just a week earlier. He made the 36-hole cut with rounds of 75 and 70, then faced the 54-hole cut.
However, his third round unraveled when he carded a 5-over 77. Woods finished the tournament at 6-over par, five shots outside the cut line. His final round began steadily, as he turned in 1-over through the front nine. But his challenge unraveled on the back nine with a double bogey at the 10th, followed by three straight bogeys at the 11th, 12th, and 13th holes.
Another bogey at the 16th dropped him further back, although he finished on a positive note with back-to-back birdies on the final two holes. The result marked a significant step back from last year’s T9 finish and extended a frustrating stretch.
The missed cut in Texas followed another narrow disappointment at the U.S. Junior Amateur, where Woods fell in a 14-for-2 playoff for the final match-play spots at Saucon Valley Country Club. He had shot 76 and 70 in stroke play to reach 5 over par and force his way into that playoff, only to be eliminated after making bogey on the first playoff hole.
Only last week, he lost in a playoff for the final match-play spot at the U.S. Junior Amateur. The contrast is stark. Woods will look to bounce back in upcoming events.