What does it take to win the Wells Fargo Championship Pro-Am? How about 14-under

One of the PGA Tour’s youngest players teamed with a veteran and three amateurs Wednesday to win the Wells Fargo Championship’s Pro Am event at Quail Hollow.

Cameron Young and Ryan Palmer teamed with amateurs to post a score of 14-under-par 58. They birdied 14 holes, including the final 10, and avoided bogeys in the best-ball format.

Young was the Tour’s Rookie of the Year in the 2021-22 season.

Palmer turned pro 23 years ago and has won five tournaments since then.

Amateurs on the team were David Sheffer, Chris Word and James Wyche.

A team led by Justin Thomas and Brendon Todd finished second, one shot behind the leaders. Their team had 13 birdies and five parts.

Amateurs on the runner-up team were Brandon Jenkins, Roman Josi and Justin Webb.

A team led by Tony Finau, winner of last week’s Mexico Open, tied for ninth place at 9-under. Collin Morakawa and Max Homa played with teams that tied for 14th at 8-under.

And a team that included Patrick Cantlay tied for 23rd place at 7-under.

Stellar threesomes

The first threesomes are scheduled to tee off at 6:50 a.m. Thursday in the first round of the Wells Fargo Championship, and spectators won’t have to wait long to see some of the tournament’s big names.

Teeing off at 7:23 a.m. from No. 10 will be top-10 golfers Max Homa and Patrick Cantlay, along with Sahith Theegala.

Rory McIlroy, Matt Fitzpatrick, and Jason Day are next off the tee at No. 10, set for 7:34 a.m. And the next threesome, at 7:45 a.m., includes Tony Finau.

Several top players won’t start until afternoon.

A threesome including Jordan Spieth and Xander Schauffele, will begin at 12:43 p.m. on No. 1. Next off, at 12:54 p.m., will be Justin Thomas and Rickie Fowler. And the next group, at 1:05 p.m., includes Collin Morikawa and Viktor Hovland.

First Tee honors

Three alumni of historically black colleges and universities were selected to play in a group with three-time FedEx Cup champion Rory McIlroy in Wednesday’s pro am event.

The three — Kai Dawson (N.C. A&T), Ahmad Raoul (Winston-Salem State) and Nyla Sims (Maryland-Eastern Shore) — were selected on the basis of essays they wrote about their futures.

All three are alumni of First Tee, a Wells Fargo-supported program that provides opportunities for minority children to learn the game of golf and play at area courses.

The three amateurs joined Raleigh-based professional Chesson Hadley to host a golf skills clinic late Wednesday afternoon at Quail Hollow. More than 200 Charlotte-area children who are part of the First Tee program were invited to participate.

Good weather — mostly

Gusty winds that have played havoc with golfers this week at Quail Hollow are expected to abate in time for the start of the first round Thursday.

In fact, the weather forecast for the tournament is good— for the most part.

The fly in the ointment is Saturday, with the National Weather Service predicting a 70 percent chance of rain in the morning. The rain is expected to end by midday.

Otherwise sunny to partly cloudy skies are forecast, with daily high temperatures in the low 70s, except the mid 60s Saturday.

Famous face with Cantlay

You might recognize the guy carrying the bag this weekend for Patrick Cantlay. It’s Joe LaCava, who recently caddied for Tiger Woods and was longtime caddie for Fred Couples.

“He’ll provide a steady hand on the steering wheel,” Cantlay, the world’s No. 4-ranked golfer, said of LaCava.

Cantlay had teamed for several seasons with Matt Minister but confirmed Wednesday that he has made a change.

“We accomplished a lot together,” Cantlay said of working with Minister. “But we just needed a change.”

LaCava is available because recent ankle surgery has sidelined Woods for the foreseeable future. Woods is not expected to compete in a tournament for at least several months, and possibly for the rest of the year.

Clutch putt for McIlroy

Rory McIlroy scored his first victory of tournament week Tuesday night, against a leading NASCAR driver.

McIlroy, a three-time PGA Tour champion, and Denny Hamlin, winner of 48 NASCAR Cup races, faced off in a four-hole putting competition at the Puttery, a miniature golf/bar in South End. They were part of a 50th anniversary celebration for FedEx, sponsor of the PGA Tour season championship.

McIlroy won, but Hamlin gave him a battle. It took a three-putt by Hamlin on the final hole to make a difference. McIlroy’s $50,000 winnings were donated to the FedEx Founders Foundation, which supports military veterans who are entrepreneurs.

Heading to the tournament?

The $20 million Wells Fargo Championship is at the Quail Hollow Club in south Charlotte, and tickets are still available online.

Public parking is not available at the club. Fans can park at designated lots and will be taken to the tournament via shuttle bus service.

Your parking options are:

SouthPark B: Tickets must be purchased in advance Thursday-Sunday.

Carowinds: Thursday-Friday. Tickets can be purchased online in advance, or cash payment can be made on the day of the event.

Ballantyne Corporate Park: Saturday and Sunday. Tickets can be purchased online in advance, or cash payment can be made on the day of the event.

Please see tournament policies regarding items that may or may not be permitted into the tournament grounds, and to answer other questions, such as proper attire. A variety of food and beverage options are available at the tournament.

The first and second rounds will be televised by the Golf Channel on Thursday and Friday. Coverage Saturday and Sunday will start on the Golf Channel and then switch to CBS.

Thursday’s tee times

Tee times for Thursday’s first round of the Wells Fargo Championship at Quail Hollow:

No. 1 tee

6:50 a.m.: Ryan Armour, Kevin Strealman, Hayden Buckley

7:01: Keith Mitchell, Mark Hubbard, Tyson Alexander

7:12: Adam Long, Byeong Hun An, Lee Hodges

7:23: Erik van Rooyen, Joel Dahmen, J.B. Holmes

7:34: Sepp Straka, Luke List, Michael Thompson

7:45: Nico Echavarria, K.H. Lee, Martin Laird

7:56: Cam Davis, Jim Herman, Francesco Molinari

8:07: Chez Reavie, J.T. Poston, Garrick Higgo

8:18: Adam Scensson, Robert Strab, Gary Woodlan

8:29: Kelly Kraft, Zac Blair, Justin Lower

8:40: Adam Hadwin, Russell Knox, Joseph Bramlett

8:51: Kevin Tway, Patton Kizzire, James Hahn

9:02: Carson Young, Trevor Cone, Ryan Gerard

12:10 p.m.: Rory Sabbatini, Kramer Hickok, David Lipsy

12:21: Nick Watney, Justin Suh, Austin Smotherman

12:32: Tommy Fleetwood, Alex Noren, Eric Cole

12:43: Tom Kim, Xander Schauffele, Jordan Spieth

12:54: Keegan Bradley, Justin Thomas, Rickie Fowler

1:05: Viktor Hovland, Collin Morikawa, Cameron Young

1:16: Sam Burns, Adam Scott, Shane Lowry

1:27: Si Woo Kim, Trey Mullinax, Tyrrell Hatton

1:38: Wyndham Clark, Matthew NeSmith, Davis Thompson

1:49: Michael Kim, Sam Ryder, Greyson Sigg

2:00: David Lingmerth, Henrick Norlander, S.H. Kim

2:11: Brent Grant, Akshay Bhatia, Pierceson Coody

2:22: Danny Quinn, Ryan Cole, Marcus Byrd

No. 10 tee

6:50 a.m.: Ben Martin, Robby Shelton, Taylor Montgomery

7:01: Ryan Moore, Stephan Jaeger, Will Gordon

7:12: Andrew Putnam, Denny McCarthy, Beau Hossler

7:23: Max Homa, Patrick Cantlay, Sahith Theegala

7:34: Matt Fitzpatrick, Rory McIlroy, Jason Day

7:45: Tony Finau, Corey Conners, Harris English

7:56: Seamus Power, Mackenzie Hughes, Webb Simpson

8:07: Nick Hardy, Matt Wallace, Taylor Moore

8:18: Davis Riley, Sungjae Im, Lucas Glover

8:29: Troy Merritt, Doc Redman, Alex Smalley

8:40: Dylan Frittelli, Scott Piercy, Jimmy Walker

8:51: Aaron Rai, Austin Eckroat, Harris Endycott

9:02: Alejandro Tosti, Willie Mack III, Austin Greaser

12:10 p.m.: C.T. Pan, Patrick Rodgers, Doug Ghim

12:21: Danny Willett, Callum Terren, Matthias Schwab

12:32: Chesson Hadley, Ben Taylor, Sam Stevens

12:43: Chris Kirk, Tyler Duncan, Brendon Todd

12:54: J.J. Spaun, Stewart Cink, Zach Johnson

1:05: Kurt Kitayama, Richy Werenski, Brian Harman

1:16: Chad Ramey, Paul Haley II, Lento Griffin

1:27: Cameron Champ, Andrew Landry, Matt Kuchar

1:38: Nate Lashley, Adam Schenk, Taylor Pendrith

1:49: Ryan Palmer, Peter Malnati, Ben Griffin

2:00: Jason Dufner, Emiliano Grillo, Max McGreevy

2:11: Dylan Wu, Harry Hall, M.J. Daffue

2:22: Trace Crowe, Morgan Deneen, Quinn Riley