Cameron Champ has been flying under the radar for some time now, but a return to the Sanderson Farms Championship seems to have sparked the resurgence of his undeniable talent. This tournament, which he triumphed in back in 2018, has brought back the best in him.
With a gleam of enthusiasm, Champ expressed his love for the Country Club of Jackson in Jackson, Miss., where he boasts a scoring average of 67.91 over 11 rounds. His remarkable performance in the third round, a seven-under par 65, matched the day’s best score and positioned him in a commendable tie for sixth, just five shots behind the leader, Ben Griffin.
Champ, a three-time PGA Tour winner at the age of 28, had experienced a series of disappointing performances, missing 17 cuts in his last 24 starts and plummeting to 288th in the World Ranking.
Reflecting on his recent success, he said, “I think everything today kind of came together. It was nice and smooth. I just felt like I had control of my ball, and then on the greens I’ve been confident. Obviously, if I can drive it well here, it definitely sets me up, and I’ve been able to do that so far.
“Today I think I finally took advantage of that. The first day, I felt like I didn’t make as many putts. Even yesterday was kind of iron play and chipping around the greens. I hit some decent shots in front of par-5s and just into-the-grain chips I kind of struggled with those yesterday, but today I was fine. If I can just do that, kind of go about my day like I did today, we’ll just see where I stand after.”
Another indication of his resurgence is his improved ranking in the FedExCup Fall Standings, where he now stands at 145th. Determined to elevate his position, Champ plans to participate in nearly every tournament until the year’s end.
“I think I’m in a good space right now,” he said optimistically. “The game has been good. It’s just a matter of allowing myself to be able to play and kind of just get out of my way. This week it’s been a nice fresh kind of start, and like I said, just try to play my game, and I know if I do that, I’ll be perfectly fine. This game is already hard enough, so we definitely don’t need to make it harder on ourselves.
“I’m just going to go out there the same as I have this week and just stay within myself, play my game, and hopefully we get some good results.”
