By Sam Frost
Cameron Young made PGA Tour history on Sunday, but not the kind he was hoping for as he once again had to settle for the role of bridesmaid.
The American finished second in the Valspar Championship, two shots adrift of winner Peter Malnati at the Copperhead Course, Innisbrook. It was the seventh time the 26-year-old has finished runner-up in a PGA Tour event in his career, enduring several painful near misses, including losing by one shot to Cameron Smith at The Open Championship in St Andrews two years ago.
Sunday's result earned him a cool £724,000 in prize money, but he became the only man on the PGA Tour in the past 40 years to finish second seven times without a win, only growing his reputation as the "nearly man".
Young's title hopes were ended on the 18th at Innisbrook. After draining three birdies on the back nine, he pulled his tee shot way left into the trees and although he found the edge of the green with his second shot, he finished with a three-putt bogey, meaning Malnati in the group behind only needed a par to win the tournament as he made his way to the final hole.
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The 36-year-old would finish with a birdie to win by two, claiming his first PGA Tour title in nine years and winning almost £1.2million. Malnati could not hold back the tears as years of hard work finally paid off. But for Young, a two-time winner on the Korn Ferry Tour and the 2022 PGA Tour Rookie of the year, the taste of glory continues to elude him.
“Honestly, I realised I wasn’t going to win pretty quickly and I have a four-hour drive home with a one and a two-year-old, so whatever emotions are attached to that," a dejected Young said in a brief post-round press conference, lacking the kind of emotion viewers might have expected.
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"It was just a bad time for a pull," he added about his nightmare on the 72nd hole. "I started it on the wrong side of the wind and it was a bad time for a bad one.
"I think I kept myself in it really well today. I hit a couple of shots I was really proud of late. Those two par-threes on the back, both can bite you, so I was proud of those shots. I think I handled my own thoughts really well and that for me is a big win regardless of the outcome."
Despite his only pro wins coming on the secondary Korn Ferry Tour, Young has climbed to 13 in the Official World Golf Ranking. Although the validity of the rankings is questionable with LIV Golf players plummeting down the list with each passing week, Young's standing is a testament to his consistency, and many pundits believe his game is too good for his winless run to carry on much longer.
Five-time PGA Tour winner Jim Gallager Jr told Golf Channel that Young must not lose faith in his ability. He said: "You've just got to keep grinding away. It hurts, it hurts deep. I don't have the answer other than just keep fighting.
"That's the hardest part when you look at seven runner-ups and how close they were to winning. He's got to go 'Hey, I gave it the best, I'll get back on the horse that threw me off'."