When Cameron Young steps onto the first tee at the 2026 PGA Championship, he's not just carrying a hot streak—he's carrying a secret weapon. The world No. 5 has been on an absolute tear, winning the Players Championship and the Cadillac Championship in recent weeks, and nearly stealing the show at the Masters alongside Rory McIlroy. But the buzz around Young isn't just about his swing or his short game. It's about what's in his bag.
Since his breakthrough win at the Wyndham Championship last year, Young has been playing with a Titleist Pro V1x Double Dot golf ball—a model that's turning heads for a very specific reason. This ball is believed to be one of the first to conform to the upcoming USGA/R&A rollback rules, set to take full effect by 2030. That's right: those massive 375-yard bombs he's been launching, including the one that sealed his win at the Players? All happening with a ball that's technically supposed to reduce distance. So much for the "loss of power" narrative.
"I think I put it in play the same reason that everybody else plays the ball that they play," Young explained during a pre-tournament press conference. "I hit it during a ball test at one of the Titleist facilities almost two years ago and didn't know anything about it. I just said, 'Hey, what's that one?' because I liked the flight."
Young's journey with the ball started as a simple curiosity. He tested it at Wyndham last year, liked what he saw, and hasn't looked back. Since then, his game has skyrocketed. He's climbed into the top 5 in the Official World Golf Ranking, and every time he tees it up, he's a genuine threat to win. The biggest surprise? He hasn't lost a single yard off the tee.
"I don't think any of us are out here playing the ball that goes the farthest," Young said. "I think you'd struggle to find a single person that's doing that. We're all sacrificing a certain amount of things that we feel are worth it—control with irons, control with wedges. For me, the biggest thing is being able to control spin, and this is the ball that does the best for me."
As the golf world debates the rollback, Young is proving that adaptation doesn't have to mean compromise. For players and fans alike, his success with the Double Dot is a reminder that the right equipment—whether it's a golf ball, a glove, or a pair of shoes—can make all the difference. And for Young, that difference is already showing up on the leaderboard.