Cam Young pulled into the lead at the Masters on Saturday after a torrid third round, a feat that he accomplished thanks in part to the support of his father.
The 28-year-old climbed ahead of Rory McIlroy late in the day on Saturday, taking advantage of some stumbles from the reigning Masters champion to move into the lead late in his round. McIlroy was able to claw back into a tie for the lead with the final day to play.
Young was seen as one of the favorites heading into the tournament, and now will head into the final day with a solid chance of earning his first green jacket.
Camoung’s Dad is His Only Coach
As the New York Post noted, Young learned the game from his father at their home course in downstate New York.
“Entering this week’s 90th Masters at Augusta National, the 28-year-old Westchester native has as good a chance as any of the 91 players in the field to win a green jacket,” the report noted.
“Young, who learned the game at Sleepy Hollow Country Club from his father, David — the head pro who remains his coach — has elevated his world ranking to No. 3 largely by winning the Players Championship last month.”
Young gave credit to his team — his father included — who helped prepare him for the tournament. He went into the weekend with a No. 3 overall ranking, playing his best golf after climbing up the rankings.
“It’s where I want to be,’’ he said. “I feel like the golf I’ve played over the last year has really been good proof of that. I have no idea what the stats would say, but I feel like I’ve played really consistent golf over the course of almost the last year.
“It’s been a long road to get to No. 3. I spent a lot of time between 15 and 20 (rankings) over the course of the last few years and then had a big dip in the beginning of last year.
“So it’s really been kind of a long march back up, and to finally be, for the first time in my career, a top 10 player in the world is pretty cool, never mind top 5.’’
Cam Young Carried Momentum into Augusta
Young is coming off a win in the Players Championship last month, saying he learned a lot from his strong final day to give him the first win of the 2026 season.
“The way that that final round at the Players went was a really good example of, if you can keep yourself in it, things like that can happen — especially around challenging golf courses, big-time events,’’ he said. “If you’re around the lead, things can happen. For a long time, it felt like I might always finish second in that scenario.’’
Young added that he had to be patient through his early years on the PGA Tour, before he notched his first victory in 2025 at Wyndham.
“Sure, I wanted to win. Sure, I wish I’d shot one better a couple of times, but at the end of the day, I was playing golf that was good enough to win tournaments. I just didn’t have a day where something happened and I won.’’
Cam Young’s Dad Played Key Role in Masters Comeback Bid