There were some unbelievable performances at The Sentry this weekend but when it came to short-game around the greens and putting, Smylie Kaufman believes only one man matched up to the eventual winner, Hideki Matsuyama.
The Sentry was won by Matsuyama in the end, who shot a record-breaking -35 over the week to win his 11th PGA Tour title.
However, with the Kapalua Plantation course offering up some ridiculous scoring, there were plenty behind Matsuyama doing the business as well.
One of those players to snag a top ten finish was the ever-improving Cameron Young. Young finished in a five-way tie for 8th and seems to be getting ever closer to his first win.
And according to Smylie Kaufman, Young is the player alongside Matsuyama who stood out on the greens in Hawaii.
Smylie Kaufman makes claim about Cameron Young’s putting at The Sentry
After naming both Hideki Matsuyama and Maverick McNealy on his Smylie Show podcast as his stars of the show in terms of approach play, Kaufman then got onto the subject of the best player around the greens in Hawaii.
And picking his top player, Kaufman went with the ever-improving, Cameron Young.
“Around the green, Cameron Young,” Kaufman said.
“And this was surprising because he was a player who has been held back by his short-game so I was really encouraged by Cameron Young around the greens this week. You could probably throw him in the putting category as well – obviously Hideki is the main man there but just because we talk about when is this guy going to win, and every time he looks at the screen he’ll have to answer it.
“But outside of him working working on himself and getting over what he deals with, I’m in love with how he stands over putts and he was great around the greens as well.”
Cameron Young’s 2024 results show he can win in 2025
When you look at the top players on the PGA Tour, it’s quite remarkable that 27-year-old Cameron Young has yet to get over the line.
A player who can hit the ball so far and now, as Kaufman says, showing touch around the greens should be able to be win.
He is getting closer, though. Young’s 2024 was a good one overall and he very nearly nabbed his first win at the Valspar as he came second.
A fourth, a sixth, and a seventh were all recorded in 2024, while an excellent ninth at the Masters should give him added confidence for this year.
Based on his performance at The Sentry, win number one will come along soon.
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