Charlie Woods has one more test standing between him and the biggest breakthrough of his young career.

The 17-year-old will tee it up in a hole-by-hole playoff Wednesday morning at Saucon Valley Country Club, fighting for one of the last two spots in match play at the 2026 U.S. Junior Amateur Championship.

Woods, the son of golf legend Tiger Woods, carded an even-par 70 in Tuesday's second round on Saucon Valley's Grace Course — his lowest 18-hole score in three trips to this championship.

The round pulled him off after an opening 5-over 76 on the Old Course. And it left him at 5-over par for 36 holes, tied for 63rd in a 264-player field.

Only the low 64 scores advance to match play. And this year the cutline landed on a crowd. Fourteen players finished tied at 5 over for the final two spots, setting up a sudden-death playoff Wednesday at 7 a.m. ET.

They will play holes 1, 5, and 18 in that order. If the tie is not broken after those three holes, the group will loop back and do it all over again until only two players remain, per Golf Channel's Brentley Romine. 

The winner of the entire U.S. Junior Amateur gets an exemption into the 2027 U.S. Open at Pebble Beach, as long as he stays an amateur. He also earns spots in the 2026 and 2027 U.S. Amateur Championships, with an opportunity to win the trophy, named after Jr. Woods' father, Tiger Woods.

Charlie Woods' Slow Start Could Have Ended All the Hope

Woods had to struggle enough to reach this playoff. His opening round on Monday began in almost the worst way possible. He started on the Old Course and went bogey-triple bogey on his first two holes. After five holes, he was already 6 over par.

But he birdied the par-5 sixth hole, and then he played his final 13 holes in 1 under par, closing with a birdie on the 18th. That 76 was his best opening round in three tries at this championship. It kept him alive.

Tuesday was about survival again.  He started on the 10th hole and bogeyed his first hole of the day at No. 11. Then the round turned. He eagled at the 13th, added birdies at 16 and 18, and made the turn with a 2-under 33.

The closing stretch was tense again. Bogeys on the 4th and 7th holes dropped him right back to the edge. One more mistake and his tournament would be over. But he made two pars on the 8th and 9th holes to sign for a 70.

It was good enough to give him a chance, nothing more. But Woods was never this close before.

He missed the cut by a wide margin in his 2024 debut at Oakland Hills, shooting 12-over 82 and 10-over 80. Last summer at Trinity Forest, he opened with an 80 and followed with a 74, again falling short.

Read more at Club Golf!

Written by

Md Saife Fida