By Brayden Conover
Wednesday’s second round at the Golfweek Senior Tournament of Champions at The Forest Golf and Country Club in Fort Myers, Florida, saw wind gusts up to 30 miles per hour, making scoring a premium all day long.
Among those who took advantage of the adverse conditions was Maryland’s Vance Welch. Already twice a Golfweek events winner in 2023, Welch has an opportunity to cap off a four-win season before the calendar flips to 2024.
Welch began the day one stroke back of first-round leader John Barry at 1-over par.
Even on the day and 1 over for the tournament through 27 holes, Welch turned up his game while the winds churned off the nearby Gulf Coast. Three birdies on his first four holes to start the back nine dotted Welch’s scorecard to put him at 2-under par quickly.
A tee shot on the par-3 fifth hole rode the right to left wind a bit too hard, finding trouble just 6 inches out of bounds. A double bogey dropped Welch back to even, but back-to-back bogeys on Nos. 6 and 7 put him back in the hole with a four-shot swing back to 2 over in just three holes.
Finishing strong with birdies on Nos. 8 and 9 to cap off his round, Welch was pleased with how he finished, despite the hiccup.
“As soon as I saw the ball go out of bounds, I said ‘You know what, I’ve had some good breaks today, this is the bad one…I’m not going to let it bother me.’ I just came off three birdies, so I can’t complain too much.”
A big reason as to why Welch was able to rebound and keep the throttle down late into the round?
“I videotaped my practice rounds,” Welch said. “It’s something I’ve never done before…I was watching it and as the round went on, I was not finishing my swing. I don’t know if I was tired [or what], but it really showed me some flaws in my game that I need to fix. I’ve hit the ball fantastic the past two days, I’ve only hit one bad shot.”
Welch’s film study has paid off as he now holds the 36-hole lead, two shots clear Jim Doing, who is 3 over. Patrick Stayer is 4 over, Ken Kinkopf is 5 over, and round one leader John Barry is also 5 over. They will all look to give chase on Thursday to take the title in what will be a windy and rainy final round.
Super Seniors Division
Overnight leader Greg Goode grew his one-shot lead with a three over 75. Duke Delcher is 5 over, Mike Arter is 6 over, James Starnes is 7 over, and Steve Humphrey is 8 over, and they are all vying to close out a come-from-behind victory.
A win for Goode would secure a top-five finish in the Golfweek Player of the Year race, while a runner-up finish for Humphrey would put him ahead of No. 1 Marcus Beck for the PoY Super Senior title with one event remaining in the season.
Legends Division
Pete Allen continues to sit on the top of the leaderboard in the Legends division. Enjoying a three-shot lead after the first round, Allen (6 over) now holds a four-shot lead following a second-round 76.
Paul Schlacter is 10 over, Vince Scarpetta is 11 over, and Sam Robinson is also 11 over round out the podium with 18 holes remaining.
Super Legends Division
Despite gusty conditions, 18-hole leader Gary Hardin bested his age, bouncing back from an opening-round 3-over 75 with an even-par 72 on Wednesday. He holds a four-shot lead on Jack Marin, who is 7 over. Cole Henry is 8 over and sits in third place after a double bogey on his final hole cost him the low round of the day of 71.