Cameron Young leads the Cadillac Championship after Round 1 at Doral after carding a bogey-free 8-under 64 on Thursday, the best opening score in the PGA TOUR’s return to the famed South Florida venue.
Young holds a one-shot advantage over Jordan Spieth and Alex Smalley, who both opened with 7-under 65. Nick Taylor is alone in fourth at 66, while Nico Echavarria began with a 67. World No. 1 Scottie Scheffler opened with a 1-under 71.
For a course known for demanding commitment off the tee and restraint into the greens, Young found the right balance from the start. He said Doral largely presents the challenge in plain sight, which allowed him to focus less on learning hidden angles and more on executing shots and avoiding the sort of mistakes that can quickly derail a round.
That formula worked beautifully.
Young’s Putter Did the Heavy Lifting
Young’s round was clean from start to finish, but the putter turned it into something special.
He made a series of lengthy birdie putts and finished the day with close to 98 feet of putts made, a total that speaks to both confidence and feel. Young later joked that he felt like he had made “a billion feet of putts,” which summed up the rhythm of the round better than any stat sheet could.
He also said the key was not simply firing at everything. In his view, Doral allows players to be aggressive from the fairway, but only if they stay aware of the water hazards and the few areas where the rough can become especially penal.
That is usually a good blueprint around a course like this. Attack when you are in position. Play defensively when you are not.
Spieth’s Planning Produced a 65
Jordan Spieth took a different route to nearly the same result.
His 7-under 65 included an eagle at the par-5 eighth, where he chipped in, and he credited much of his comfort level to the notes he gathered during Wednesday’s pro-am. Spieth said he paid close attention to grain changes and approach patterns, using that information to better understand where he could be aggressive and where a safer play made more sense.
That course-management approach was evident throughout the round.
Spieth said the biggest challenge was staying disciplined because even though the greens are large, the useful sections around many hole locations are much smaller than they first appear. That made distance control and decision-making especially important.
He did not describe the round as perfect, but he did say he kept the ball in front of him and generally played the course the right way. On a layout that can punish impatience, that matters.
Smalley Stayed Out of Trouble
Alex Smalley’s 65 may have been the most quietly impressive score near the top of the board.
He said the best part of his round was limiting mistakes, and his card reflected that. Smalley described the day as relatively stress-free, aside from one notable par-saving situation at the seventh. He also emphasized how important it was to handle long putts well, especially given how quickly Doral can become complicated when players leave themselves out of position.
His comments about the rough were also revealing. Smalley said judging lies from there can be difficult, particularly when jumpers come into play and it becomes harder to stop the ball near the hole.
That is one reason his round should not be dismissed as merely a hot start. It was built on patience and control, two qualities that often hold up over multiple days.
Doral’s Return Has Already Created a Strong Leaderboard
The first round delivered exactly what tournament organizers and fans would have wanted from the PGA TOUR’s first visit back to Doral in 10 years.
There is a recognizable venue, a tightly packed leaderboard and several very different contenders already in place. Young supplied the low number. Spieth brought star power and creativity. Smalley added another name worth following closely into Friday. Taylor and Echavarria are also positioned well.
Scheffler, meanwhile, is still very much within reach, even after a round that never fully clicked.
What to Watch in Round 2
Friday’s second round should reveal whether Thursday’s scoring was the start of a trend or more of a one-day opening window.
If the wind picks up and the course firms slightly, Doral could become noticeably more demanding. That would put even greater emphasis on fairways, long-iron control and smart misses around the greens.
Young has the lead, but the margin is slim and the course still looks capable of reshuffling things in a hurry.
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