Charlie Woods' U.S. Junior run ends with bogey in playoff

Charlie Woods' run at the 2026 U.S. Junior Amateur ended early Wednesday with a bogey on the first playoff hole.

The 17-year-old son of Tiger Woods fell shy of advancing to match play at Saucon Valley Country Club in Bethlehem, Pa.

Charlie Woods was one of 14 golfers in the playoff, competing for two spots in match play. The Florida State commit went 76-70 in stroke play, topping his previous performances of 80-74 in 2025 and 82-80 in 2024.

Woods was 6-over-par through five holes in Monday's round before rebounding strong and playing his next 31 holes in 1-under par.

In Wednesday's playoff, Woods' tee shot at the par-5 first hole found the middle of the fairway, about 270 yards from the hole. With two players ahead of him having already carded birdies, he went for the green in two but found thick rough. His pitch ended up on the fringe and his birdie chip slid past the hole, ending his day.

Eli Wessel, Hudson Kutchma and Leo Gao birdied to advance to the second playoff hole, where Wessel and Kutchma made pars to move on to match play.

Woods is heading into his senior season of high school and is expected to sign with the Seminoles, where he will join No. 1-ranked junior Miles Russell in the 2027 recruiting class. Russell shared medalist honors this week and entered match play as the No. 2 seed.

Woods entered the week ranked No. 174 by the American Junior Golf Association.

--Field Level Media