Cameron Young Opens With 3 Straight Birdies to Reach 6-Under at Royal Birkdale

3 articles · Updated · The New York Times · Jul 19

Three opening birdies lifted Cameron Young to 6-under, four shots off the lead, after the American rebounded from Saturday’s late collapse with a 12-foot birdie putt on No. 3.
Young had fallen seven back after a third-round 73 that included two late bogeys, but his fast start immediately put pressure on the leaders in the final round of the 2026 Open Championship.
Scottie Scheffler, the defending champion, also started sharply—stuffing his approach to about 1 foot on No. 1 to move to 5-under, though he began the day six behind and has struggled with the putter all week.
Rory McIlroy briefly reached 4-under with a birdie on the sixth before giving a shot back with a bogey at the seventh, leaving him further adrift as Royal Birkdale’s final-round chase unfolded.