Cameron Young shot 5-under-par 65 and threatened to run away from the pack during the Wyndham Championship’s third round Saturday at Greensboro, N.C.
Young, seeking his first victory on the PGA Tour, is at 20-under 190 for a five-stroke advantage on Colombia’s Nico Echavarria. Young has been a runner-up seven times since joining the tour in 2022.
Echavarria, who shot 64, had birdies on four of the final seven holes to rise into contention.
Chris Kirk (67), Mac Meissner (70) and defending champion Aaron Rai (69) of England are tied for third at 12 under.
Young, who was at 15 under through the first two rounds with the 125 matching the tournament’s 36-hole scoring record, was tearing through Sedgefield Country Club. Through six holes of the third round, Young’s margin rose to eight strokes on a quintet that was trying to keep him in their sights.
Young had birdies on Nos. 3-6. Until the 15th hole Saturday, Young’s lone bogey in the tournament came on No. 1 (his 10th hole) of the first round Thursday. He later added two birdies.
Young, 28, played collegiately at nearby Wake Forest.
Rai lost momentum he had in the second round when he came back to complete that Saturday morning. Then in the third round, he was 2 over through 12 holes before three consecutive birdies put him back in the mix.
Amateur Jackson Koivun, a college golfer for Auburn, shot 65 and is alone in sixth place at 11 under.
South Korea’s Sungae Im, after a pair of 64s and playing in the final group in the third round, dipped with a 73 and is at 9 under.
It was a long day at the course. Some golfers had as many as eight holes to complete in the second round, which was suspended Friday afternoon because of storms. Tom Kim withdrew rather than completing the second round.
The third round used threesomes, starting on the first and 10th tees.
The Wyndham Championship marks the last tournament on the PGA Tour’s regular season, so there will be crucial developments throughout Sunday’s round as golfers aim to secure spots in the top 70 in the FedEx Cup standings in order to qualify for the postseason.
After Saturday’s third-round 70, Gary Woodland is right at No. 70 in the standings. He’s at 9 under for the tournament.
–Field Level Media
