DETROIT — Cameron Young paused for a moment before he politely asked for the exact definition of “imposter syndrome.”
It’s not that Young didn’t want to answer the inquiry — when did he shed his imposter syndrome and prove to himself that he belonged on the PGA Tour? — he simply wanted “to make sure I don’t sound stupid.”
By the dictionary? A behavioral health phenomenon that causes people to doubt their own skills, accomplishments, or intellect, despite evidence of their success. Put more simply, it’s this recurring thought: There’s no way I really belong here.
“Oh, yeah, I think it’s gradual,” Young said Thursday at Detroit Golf Club, a few minutes after he finished with a 5-under 67 to sit tied for second at the 2024 Rocket Mortgage Classic, ahead of the afternoon wave. “I was fortunate early on to have some good finishes that, at least golf-wise, makes you think there’s no reason you shouldn’t be out here. I’d imagine it’s the same for Nick.
“I know he hasn’t played his best golf since (the win) but he’s going to have that as proof that he can play well out here, so it’s just a matter of doing what he does.”
That “Nick” is Nick Dunlap, a 20-year-old who as recently as January was a sophomore at the University of Alabama.
Of course, he’s no longer a student in Tuscaloosa; that ended when he earned a sponsor exemption to The American Express in La Quinta, California, then went out and shot a tournament-record 11-under 60 on Saturday en route to winning it.
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That made him the first amateur to win on tour since Phil Mickelson took the Tucson Open in 1991 and the second-youngest winner on the PGA Tour in the past 90 years. (The only younger winner? Jordan Spieth, who won the 2013 John Deere in his final weeks as a teen.)
But since Dunlap accepted his Tour card and moved toward living out his dream full-time, reality has been less pleasant: In 14 starts, Dunlap hasn’t finished higher than a tie for 11th (in late March). He missed the cut at the Masters, the PGA Championship and the U.S. Open, with just four finishes under par and two in the top 20.
Needless to say, Dunlap’s 67 on Thursday morning, leaving him tied with Young, one stroke back on the leaderboard of early leader Aaron Rai, was exactly what the doctor ordered. By the end of the day, Dunlap was tied for ninth, four shots back of the lead of Akshay Bhatia.
“I haven’t started very well the last couple weeks, so that’s nice,” Dunlap said. “Swing felt really nice today coming out pretty early morning. I drove it great, ironed it nicely. Clean up on some speed work around the greens, but overall very, very impressed with the way I kind of navigated around today.”
Dunlap, who opened his round on the back nine, got going with a 7-foot birdie on the par-5 14th, then followed with another birdie in 15 as he put his tee shot inside of 8 feet, then sunk the putt.
After a par at 16, Dunlap reached the par-5 17th green in two, then just narrowly missed a 22-foot eagle putt before tapping in to get to 3-under. That’s where he sat when he caught fire at the turn.
The 20-year-old putted for four birdies in a row — an 11-footer on No. 1, a 10-footer on No. 2, a 13-footer on No. 3 and then a 9-footer on No. 4 — to get out in front of the entire pack at 7-under.
“I still wouldn’t say it’s normal yet, it’s been a bit of a whirlwind,” Dunlap told the Free Press, describing the past six months. “It’s a dream to be out here, it really is. I knew it was going to be a bit of an adjustment, some things I had to get better on. I saw that in college, and it was only going to be magnified when I got out here.
“I’ve just been trying to look at it as going through this little rough stretch is the best thing for me in the long run. I’m learning as quickly as I can.”
That included lessons on the next two holes.
On No. 5, Dunlap short-sided himself in the green-side bunker then, after failing to get up-and-down, blew his bogey putt by the hole as well. He found the fairway and the green on No. 6, but couldn’t make a 5-footer for par, dropping three strokes in two holes.
Finally, Dunlap made a 13-foot birdie putt on No. 8 and parred No. 9. The final tally: eight birdies, seven pars, two bogeys and one double bogey.
It’s ironic that Young was the one discussing Dunlap’s staying power, considering the Alabama native has done something Young hasn’t: Win on tour.
It’s not that Young’s not close, or not an elite player. He entered the Rocket sitting No. 34 in the Fed Ex Cup standings and No. 23 in the world rankings — the highest-ranked competitor in the Rocket field. Young has made 15 of 16 cuts this year, complete with six top-25s, five top-10s and a runner-up finish.
But back to the original question — Young harkened back to 2022, and to an event that helped him off the course.
“The Presidents Cup was really nice for me because I got to sit around the same table as some of the bigger names in the game,” Young said. “To be considered in that group, even for that week, was cool for me and made me more comfortable, personally.”
Dunlap, Young noted, doesn’t seem nervous.
“I’ve spent a little bit of time with him the last little bit, had lunch with him a few times. … He seems older than he is,” Young said. “I feel old saying this, but every group who comes out is younger and younger. … It’s not a shock to see guys that are performing on their level.”
Something that is a shock? Miles Russell, the 15-year-old phenom playing the Rocket on a sponsor exemption.
Russell parlayed a top-20 finish on the Korn Ferry Tour earlier this year into an exemption at Detroit Golf Club —and a pass on the rule that hangs in the DGC clubhouse that players must be 16 years of age or older to enter.
And yet, he may be too young to have imposter’s syndrome. In making an unprecedented early PGA Tour debut, an argument could be made that though he can’t collect any winnings, he’s the only one playing with house money.
“The more you can get out here and experience it, it definitely makes it easier when you try to do it for a living and for your job,” Dunlap said. “I was fortunate to have one or two starts, not at 15, but early. It’s nerve-wracking, but he’s obviously got a ton of talent.”
Dunlap would’ve collected $1.5 million for his win back in January had he not still been an amateur, but he’s not bitter about that. Living out his dream one day at a time, Dunlap said he never could’ve imagined his time with the Crimson Tide would be done in less than two years.
To be fair, it’s not done done. He still lives in Tuscaloosa; earlier this month, he moved into a new one-bedroom apartment, though it’s in the same building as nearly the entire Alabama golf team.
His hope is to have time in the fall to get to go to some football games — the Huntsville, Alabama, native is still a bit upset about Michigan’s Rose Bowl win over the Tide — but business comes first. He has proven he can win at this level; he just has to prove it to himself again.
“I think people are starting to see that, maybe not week-to-week, but college kids are good enough to compete out here,” Dunlap said. “The more we get that opportunity early on to get comfortable early on and learn about these golf courses the better.
“Maybe then it’s a little easier, a little more comfortable when we get there later.”