YOUNG DENIES FITZPATRICK ON DRAMATIC FINAL DAY AT SAWGRASS
American Cameron Young celebrates with his family after winning THE PLAYERS Championship at Sawgrass. (Photo: Getty/PGA Tour)
Cameron Young held his nerve coming down the closing stretch at TPC Sawgrass to win THE PLAYERS Championship and deny Matt Fitzpatrick after a dramatic final day that also saw Ludvig Åberg suffer a costly late collapse.
Young carded a composed four-under-par 68 to finish 13-under and secure the biggest victory of his career, edging Fitzpatrick by a single stroke after a tense back-nine battle on the Stadium Course.
“Today I felt like I did an incredible job of just hanging around,” Young said afterwards. “I haven’t been in that scenario, really. I’ve been chasing. I’ve had people shoot 65 on me. Today, I feel like it was a great mental test of just how much can you linger. How much can you keep yourself in the tournament and see what happens.”
“I think I’m just generally pretty hard on myself,” Young said. “I think a lot of people that are good at what they do expect a lot out of themselves. So, I think that while it might not be the best thing for performing at your highest level, those expectations are also something that drive you to be good.”
Of the shot he hit into the 72nd hole to secure the biggest success of his career to date, Young said he was mentally dialled in. “I’m going to hit the best shot of my life right here,” Young said to himself.
The American began the day four shots off the lead but steadily moved into contention while overnight leader Åberg struggled to maintain the control he had shown for much of the week.
For a long stretch on Sunday, the Swede looked set to claim the PGA Tour’s flagship event. Starting the round with a three-shot advantage, Åberg appeared comfortable through the front nine before disaster struck early on the inward half.
His challenge began to unravel at the par-five 11th when his approach found the water, leading to a bogey that stalled his momentum. The real damage arrived a hole later at the short par-four 12th when his drive again splashed into the hazard guarding the green. The resulting double bogey abruptly transformed the leaderboard and invited the chasing pack back into contention.
While Åberg’s hopes faded, Fitzpatrick surged. The former US Open champion produced a composed round that briefly lifted him into the outright lead as the final groups approached the notorious closing stretch.
But Young produced the decisive moment of the championship at the iconic island-green 17th. Trailing by one shot, he fired a superb approach to within seven feet before calmly holing the birdie putt to draw level with Fitzpatrick.
When the Englishman’s birdie attempt slid past moments later, the pair walked to the 18th tee tied for the lead.
Young then delivered a booming drive down the last, leaving himself perfectly placed in the fairway while Fitzpatrick’s tee shot drifted into the pine straw on the right side. Forced to play conservatively, Fitzpatrick laid up short of the green before pitching past the hole and missing the par putt that would have kept the pressure firmly on his rival.
Young, needing only a steady finish, lagged his first putt close and tapped in for par to seal a one-shot victory and lift one of the most coveted trophies in professional golf.
Behind the leading duo, Xander Schauffele finished third on 11-under after a strong final round, while Robert MacIntyre claimed fourth following an impressive weekend charge.
Åberg’s closing 76 ultimately left him tied for fifth, a disappointing end after appearing firmly in command earlier in the day.
For Young, however, the final-round drama marked a career-defining breakthrough. After a series of near misses since arriving on the PGA Tour, the 28-year-old finally delivered under the most intense pressure, mastering Sawgrass’s perilous closing holes to capture the title widely regarded as the Tour’s unofficial fifth major.
Rory McIlroy tied 46th on level par and will be glad to have made it through all four rounds in a week that started with a back injury. Shane Lowry missed the cut.