As Rory McIlroy’s passion for the PGA Tour hits a wall, Cameron Young expands as he fills schedule and attempts to get his money up.
McIlroy has played in just six PGA Tour events this season not including the majors, and said he’s getting particular with his schedule to spend more time with his family and take mental rests when needed.
His schedule has drawn the attention of many, as he withdrew from the Arnold Palmer Invitational and has noticeably cut down on the amount of tournaments he plays. The Ryder Cup star will not meet the minimum requirement of 15 PGA Tour events in 2026, but he still has lifetime membership thanks to his 30-wins throughout his career.
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It’s apparent the 37-year-old isn’t a fan of the Tour in its current state, but Young, a two-time winner this season, is upping his numbers.
“I’m going to play from here through the end of the season,” said Young, who’s earned nearly $14 million in prize money so far this year. “So I’m going to play here at the Rocket Classic and then Wyndham next week and then the Playoffs. I had my time off.
“I was two off before the British and then off last week. I did my best to catch up on some rest and get some practice in to kind of prepare for a long stretch at the end of the year.”
Young plans to tee off in each PGA Tour event left on the calendar -Credit:Getty Images
Young’s competitive time has paid off, as the tour star earned a runner up finish at the Open Championship alongside Ryan Fox and the Players and Cadillac Championship trophies this year.
He doesn’t have a first place at a major tournament like McIlroy, who is tuning down his attention to the game on the American circuit.
“Again, the PGA Tour is in a lot of flux at the minute with a lot of their schedule and structure and everything like that,” the world number two explained at the Open Championship.”
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McIlroy arrived to the Open Championship at Royal Birkdale weeks in advance to practice, and ended up stumbling on the leaderboard to T-40 after calling Bryson DeChambeau ‘performative.’
“So I think the change where it doesn’t matter where you are in the top 30 going into the TOUR Championship, it’s like I just need to be in the top 30 going in there to have a chance to win a FedExCup. So why would I care about the first two?” said McIlroy.
“I sort of came to that decision last year, and I’m just sort of doing the same thing.”