Cameron Young is in the mix to win the 2026 Masters after flying up the leaderboard with his round on Saturday
Cameron Young has established himself a serious contender for the Masters as the final round gets under way.
The American carded a seven-under-par 65 on Saturday to draw level with defending champion Rory McIlroy ahead of Sunday’s action. Young, 28, finds himself on the cusp of a first career major following encouragement from his wife to make changes away from the course.
He already boasts top-four finishes across all four majors, though he’s waiting for that breakthrough win. The 28-year-old’s form on the PGA Tour saw him attract interest from LIV Golf with his performances but he has thus far opted to remain on the PGA Tour.
Reflecting on his third round, he said: “You’re going to hit a bad shot or two,” said the Florida-based professional. The ability to just swallow it and move on and go hit your next shot, the emotions of it, the frustration, whatever it may be, I think this place really punishes you if you play angry or impatient.
“When something goes wrong, those are the things that you kind of naturally want to be. So it’s fighting those natural inclinations toward those feelings and not letting it affect your decision-making, your execution for another shot.”
As Young steps out onto Augusta National on Sunday aiming to improve on a career-best finish of seventh on the famous course, there will be nowhere to hide. Here’s a little more about the journey that has brought him to this moment.
Cameron Young’s net worth
While he may still be awaiting his first victory at a major, Young has nonetheless enjoyed a number of seven-figure scores. This has left his net worth at an estimated $17million (£12.6m) at the close of the 2025 PGA Tour season.
That number appears to have increased since, courtesy of his triumph at the Players Championship in March. He finished one stroke ahead of Matt Fitzpatrick at TPC Sawgrass to claim the $4.5m first prize.
The Players represented only his second victory on the PGA Tour, following a $1.76m haul at the Wyndham Championship in 2025. He also collected just under $1.5m for his runner-up finish at the Open in 2022, when Cameron Smith pipped him to the title, along with $1.02m after tying for third at the PGA Championship earlier that same year.
Wife and children
Young and his wife Kelsey Dalition grew up together in New York state and tied the knot in 2021. They have three children together, with their eldest – a son named Henry – turning four this year.
Those who followed the golfer at the outset of his career will now he’s rarely seen without a thick beard. However, he briefly opted for an almost clean-shaven look, revealing that Kelsey was the inspiration behind the change.
“Honestly, my wife just kind of said, why don’t you shave… I haven’t been clean‐shaven probably since our first son was born,” he said after unveiling the new look at the 2023 PGA Championship. It failed to bring him any luck, however — Young missed the cut at that tournament and allowed his facial hair to grow back before securing a top-10 finish at that year’s Open at Royal Liverpool.
Saying no to LIV Golf
Young was by no means the only big name courted by LIV Golf as the Saudi-backed competition looked to make a splash. He chose to remain on the PGA Tour but conceded it was far from a straightforward decision when the approach came in 2022.
“Frankly, I have decided to stay,” he said at the time. “So, I don’t know, it’s a really difficult situation because it’s not really anything anyone wanted to happen.
“I think it wasn’t meant to be this hostile between the two. Frankly, throughout the whole process with [LIV], I was very interested. I think they have a bunch of good ideas and are doing some cool stuff.
“With some of the changes coming [to the PGA Tour], that’s kind of what really helped me decide to kind of stay and pursue those goals that I have for myself like making a Presidents Cup team and a Ryder Cup team and winning a major when all of that is just uncertain if you go. It’s a tough place for me because, you know, I’m very young and there are a lot of factors.”
Young ticked off two of those three aims, playing at the Presidents Cup in 2022 as the United States claimed victory before going on to make his Ryder Cup debut in 2025. The one thing that has eluded him is a major title, though he has the opportunity to rectify that on Sunday.
Watch The Masters with Sky’s Ultimate TV bundle
Coverage of The Masters gets underway on April 6 and golf fans can watch it live with Sky’s Ultimate TV and Sky Sports bundle. This includes 135 channels, nine from Sky Sports, plus HBO Max, Netflix, Disney+, discovery+ and Hayu.
You must be logged in to post a comment Login