Cameron Young Shoots Solo 62 to Surge at Tour Championship

Cameron Young shot an 8-under 62 in Friday's second round of the Tour Championship at East Lake Golf Club, playing the entire round without a fellow competitor after an odd number of players remained in the FedEx Cup finale field.

Why was Young playing alone?

J.J. Spaun withdrew during Thursday's first round with a shoulder injury, leaving 28 players in the field. With no partner to pair him with, Young went off the first tee by himself as the day's opening starter, a day after Min Woo Lee did the same and shot a career-low 62 of his own.

Young opened the tournament with a 70 that included three bogeys in his first five holes, then made only one more bogey over his next 31. Playing solo suited him. "It seems to be a strong pattern," Young said of the recent run of single players carding low rounds at East Lake.

What changed with his putter?

Young put a Scotty Cameron Xperimental 10.5 prototype putter in his bag on Monday after testing it briefly, replacing the flat stick he had used through a stretch of results he called disappointing following his runner-up finish at the British Open in July. The swap paid off immediately: he went from making 50 feet worth of putts in the opening round to 136 feet in the second.

How did the eagle at 11 happen?

Young reached 7 under through 11 holes, highlighted by a 332-yard drive and a 238-yard approach into the par-5 11th that set up a 42-foot eagle putt. A bogey at the par-4 12th, where he missed his only green in regulation of the stretch and caught a greenside bunker, briefly slowed his charge before he settled in for the rest of the round.

A day of playing alone turned into the biggest leaderboard move of the round.

Young, 29, ranked last in the field in strokes gained tee-to-green and approach the green over the tournament, relying instead on his short game and the new putter to climb back into contention after entering the week tied for last.

Young heads into the weekend needing to keep pace after saying he did not expect the leaderboard to stay close given how the course was playing. Saturday's third round will determine the group Young plays in for Sunday's final round of the FedEx Cup finale.