Last year, Cameron Young waited six hours to learn if he had advanced to the Round of 64 in the U.S. Amateur Championship, only to find out he’d fallen short by one stroke.
This year, there was no suspense.
Hitting birdies on three of his first four holes, the Fordham Prep senior cruised to a tie for 14th after two rounds of stroke play at the Atlanta Athletic Club, shooting 3-under-par to reach match play for the first time at the top amateur tournament.
The 17-year-old earned the 20th seed in the single-elimination bracket and will face 45th-seeded Tyler Torano, of Chula Vista, Calif., Wednesday at 10:30 a.m.
“I got off to a really good start,” Young said in a phone interview. “ I knew pretty much the whole back nine that I wasn’t anywhere near the cut line, which is nice.
“It’s just kind of [a relief], honestly. It’s a completely different feeling. I’m just excited I get to play again. It’s kind of cool to be down to the final 64.”
Young, a Scarborough, N.Y. native who has committed to Wake Forest, was one of six boys recently named to the U.S. team in next month’s Junior Ryder Cup in Scotland. Two weeks ago, the three-time Westchester Golf Association Junior Player of the Year finished sixth at the Junior PGA Championship.
Max Buckley of Rye missed the 17-person playoff — in which four qualified — by a stroke
Young double-bogeyed on the 13th hole, triple-bogeyed on the 14th hole and bogeyed on the 15th hole last year to miss out on match play, but this year his father thinks the difference is that now his son believes he belongs.
“Last year, I think he felt a little bit out of place as a high-school kid, playing against college kids and all the great amateur players, but I don’t think he has that this year,” said David Young, a golf pro at Sleepy Hollow Country Club. “He went back knowing he can play with these guys and his expectations are high.”
So high that he could soon see his name etched in history alongside other former U.S. Amateur Championship winners, such as Tiger Woods, Jack Nicklaus and Phil Mickelson.
“I don’t know what’s going to happen, but it’s doable,” Young said. “It’s pretty much a level playing field once you get down to that final 64.