By Billy Condon

Flash back to the summer of 2007. Sleepy Hollow Country Club in Scarborough, N.Y., is named the host site for the 2011 Met Open, and 10-year-old Cameron Young tells his father, David, that it is his goal to qualify and play in the championship. It’s a pretty curious statement for an elementary school student to make, but what makes the story less curious is that Cameron’s father is the head professional at the historic club that overlooks the Hudson.

“At the time, I figured he would be capable [of qualifying] and it would be a possibility, but he would have to play pretty darn well,” David recalls of Cameron’s statement. “I didn’t think he would be this strong of a player this early.”

Flash forward to this summer as the 14-year-old, an incoming freshman at Fordham Prep, has recorded more victories than just about any other player in the Met Area. The list includes the Carter Cup, Westchester Amateur, Westchester Boys and the U.S. Kids World Teen Championship (Boys-14) Division at Pinehurst Resort in North Carolina. Combine these victories with the fact that the younger Young had a six-inch growth spurt over the last year and that the family has been living on the Sleepy Hollow campus for the past year and a half, Cameron’s statement doesn’t seem so curious anymore. The dream became a reality when he shot a one-under-par 70 at Deal Golf and Country Club in Deal, N.J., in the qualifier he had his eyes set on.

“I remember the beginning of this season thinking about the event being here,” Cameron said. “I just treated the qualifier like a normal round and kept it in perspective.” The other perspective to look at is that Cameron was just one of three amateurs to qualify out of Deal, and he will be the youngest player in the field at Sleepy Hollow.

David, 50, has been the head pro at Sleepy Hollow for the last ten years, and is exempt into the field for being the professional representative of the host club. The Youngs will join Mark and Ryan McCormick of Suburban as the other head pro father/talented son duo competing. But having a father-son tandem representing the home club is quite rare, and they will have the support of the membership cheering them on.

In discussing the anticipation leading up to the championship, David said: “It’s been fun for us and has created quite a buzz around the club and with the membership, and I think the money’s on Cameron [to perform better]. We have been looking forward to it for a long time. But we still have to arm wrestle for who gets Mom as a caddie!”

With the cut in the Met Open coming after 36 holes, it would be admittedly extra special for both David and Cameron to make it to Thursday’s final round, and what about the possibility of them being paired together on the final day?

“It wouldn’t get much better than that,” David says with a smile. “That would be a lot of fun, and we would probably get a good gallery out there. It’s always more fun when you’re out there playing with somebody who you’re just as happy for them as you are for yourself. Things flow more when you’re rooting for each other. To be playing together and in the hunt would be a dream come true.”

The Youngs have one of the easiest commutes out of the field of 144 players: a 547-yard walk from their front door to the first tee. Cameron tees off in the first group of the championship at 7:30 a.m. on Tuesday, August 23, on the first tee. With excitement, restlessness, and course strategy flooding his thoughts Monday night, he prefers the early start time. “It’ll be nice being in the first group off and to have the course at its best.”  David begins play at 9:00 a.m. off the tenth tee.

David has a deep appreciation for the club that has welcomed his family and allowed them access to the facilities. “It has been a great relationship between our family and Sleepy Hollow, and we are thankful to the club and the membership.”

Cameron’s success this past summer has been a positive result of the hours of practice he has been able to put in at the club, playing either the main course or over the club’s lower nine-hole course and extensive practice areas until dark. And given their proximity, he doesn’t need to worry about mom or dad needing to pick him up.

David’s pride for his son’s accomplishments have the Met Area veteran, whose résumé includes winning the 2000 Westchester PGA Championship, both excited and nervous for his son’s first Met Open experience. “What Cameron’s accomplished this year has far exceeded our expectations. I know I will be worrying more about how he is doing out there than with my own round. I think he has every chance to be in the hunt. He knows the course, and hits the ball far enough and has a great short game. If he goes out and plays like he can, he has a chance.”

After four years of waiting, the time has come for Cameron to play in the event that he marked on his calendar as a fifth-grader. And David will be there, not just as Cameron’s fellow competitor, but as his proud father.