Vance Welch – Syndication Server

Four champs crowned at breezy Golfweek Senior Tournament of Champions

The Forest Golf & Country Club in Ft. Meyers, Florida, hosted the event.

Three days of battling wind gusts north of 30 miles per hour and wet conditions at The Forest Golf & Country Club in Ft. Meyers, Florida, took its toll on much of the 96-man field, but four golfers were able to survive the rest to lay claim on the final Golfweek senior amateur tournament of the year.

Seniors (55-64)

Going into Thursday’s final round, Vance Welch held a two-stroke advantage over the field, sitting at 1 over for the championship.

Through 15, Welch needed to play the final three holes even par or better to close out the championship. A double bogey on No. 16 and a closing bogey on 18 saw Welch slip from the top of the leaderboard.

With the costly stumble, Ft. Meyers native Patrick Stayer slid past Welch thanks to a bogey-free final-round 71. Stayer’s final round was the only bogey-free round of the week and was also the lowest round of the tournament in the senior age division.

Patrick Stayer of Ft. Meyers, Florida, won the 2023 Golfweek Senior Tournament of Champions. (Photo: Golfweek(

Golfweek No. 3 ranked, Kevin VandenBerg, was able to draw himself closer to the No. 1 spot in the Player of the Year rankings with a t-10 finish. Next week’s Society of Seniors Ralph Bogart Tournament will determine the Golfweek Senior Player of the Year as both VandenBerg and No. 2 Jon Lindstrom will be in the field. With No. 1 ranked Bob Royak not playing, Lindstrom and Vandenberg will have an opportunity to take the top spot right at the buzzer.

Super Seniors (65-69)

Steve Humphrey went into Thursday’s final round five shots back of 36-hole leader Greg Goode. Needing at least a runner-up finish to move ahead of No. 1 ranked Marcus Beck, Humphrey knew he had to play some of his best golf.

Carding an even par 72 to finish the event at 8 over par, Humphrey anxiously waited for the rest of the field to come in. Coming off of a birdie on No. 17, Goode bogeyed the 54th hole of the tournament, making way for a three-man playoff between himself, Humphrey and Mike Arter.

Knowing what was at stake, Humphrey took full advantage of the situation, winning the tournament on the second playoff hole. He not only goes home with the Tournament of Champions trophy but now sits atop the 2023 Player of the Year Super Senior rankings.

The playoff win also counts as a title defense for Humphrey who won the TOC super senior division in 2022 at PGA National.

Legends (70-74)

North Carolina’s Pete Allen goes wire-to-wire at The Forest, being one of two Legends to break 80 all three days en route to the championship win.

Nursing a four-stroke lead heading into the day, Allen coasted with a final round 79 to maintain his lead, closing the event out with a 13 over, 229 total. Vince Scarpetta and Bob Casamento tied for second place at 17 over.

Super Legends (75+)

After shooting his age or better the first two days, Gary Hardin (11 over) was able to battle the tough conditions just enough to take a wire-to-wire victory in his age bracket.

With scoring hard to come by, Hardin’s birdie-free 80 was enough to stave off Jack Marin, who finishes in second place at 14 over. John Blank (15 over), Gil Stenholm (16 over) and Henry Cole (16 over) round out the top five.

Mike Combs wins playoff in come-from-behind victory at 2023 Golfweek Senior National Championship

Surviving the gauntlet that became the East Course were two men who lurked just off stage all week.

[mm-video type=playlist id=01es6rjnsp3c84zkm6 player_id=none image=]The stage was set for an incredible finish at the Golfweek Senior National Championship at Grandover Resort in Greensboro, North Carolina.

Golfweek No. 1 Vance Welch, Carolinas Golf Association Hall of Famer, Paul Simson and Ironman athlete Walker Taylor were all favored to take home the championship heading into Wednesday’s final round. With hundreds of wins and championship pedigree between the three men, it seemed like it was a lock for the winner to emerge from the final group.

Not so fast.

The winds were howling throughout the final round, making the East Course at Grandover Resort play even trickier than expected. With driver taken out of the hand on many holes throughout the week, the options off the tee ramped up with the winds.

Early in the round, it looked as though Simson was going to coast to yet another victory. Two under on the front nine, Simson opened up a six-shot advantage over Welch and a four-shot swing over Taylor.

The final round proved to be an onslaught for the favorites as Simson erased his front nine work to finish with a final round 75, good for a T3 finish at 2 over. Taylor matched Simson’s tournament total (+2), unable to keep bogeys off of his card for a 77.

For Welch, his front nine, 43, became insurmountable as he posted a birdie-free 81 to slide from the 36-hole lead to a ninth-place finish (+6).

Surviving the gauntlet that became the East Course were two men who lurked just off stage all week.

Sherrill Britt was consistent all week, hanging inside the top five, and teed off in the penultimate group in the final round just two shots off of the leaders. Mike Combs began the day five back but knew he had a chance thanks to the windy conditions.

“It had to be gusting to 30 miles an hour,” Combs told Golfweek.

It was so windy that Combs’ ball rolled away from the hole on No. 9 when he was busy fixing his pitch mark.

“It rolled five feet further from the hole because the wind was blowing that hard. It was pretty funny.”

Saving par despite Mother Nature trying her best to thwart it, Combs really gained momentum with back-to-back birdies on Nos. 10 and 11.

The boost proved to be huge as he took the clubhouse lead at 1 over for the tournament after carding a 1 under 71.

All Combs could do was wait as the final two groups made their way in. Throughout the nervous 20 or so minutes, Combs couldn’t help but think of the shots he left out on the course as he was sure Britt was going to birdie the par 5 18th.

“ I just assumed all of those guys were going to birdie (18) and leapfrog me,” he said. “I was sweating it out.”

With Britt making par on the last, the duo made their way to No. 10 for a sudden-death playoff.

Combs held the tee first and decided to apply the pressure. Nailing a driver down the fairway of the par 4, he left himself a sand wedge into the green.

Britt stuck to his game plan despite Combs finding the fairway. Pulling a 3 wood into the left rough, Britt hit a great wedge to the front of the green but had about 25 feet remaining for birdie.

With the door open, Combs slammed it shut, sticking his wedge to three feet.

With Britt in for par, Combs stood over his putt to win. Then, he backed off.

“I still felt the nerves a little bit,” Combs told Golfweek. “So much so that I backed off the putt once. I regrouped and said ‘Darn it, let’s go’ and confidently stroke this into the back [of the hole].”

Finding the bottom of the cup, Combs pulled off the unlikely. Often the bridesmaid but never the bride at Golfweek championships, the Georgia native and Home Depot executive secured his first Golfweek win with the birdie.

The win catapults him from No. 15 in the Golfweek Senior Amateur Rankings to inside the top 5.

Super Seniors (65-69)

Combs wasn’t the only playoff victor on Wednesday. South Carolina’s Bob Edens (+4) came out on top after a four-hole playoff battle against Randy King.

Legends (70-74)

Charley Yandell completed his wire-to-wire win with a final round 75. Posting a tournament total of 4 over, 220, Yandell cruised to a five-shot victory over Allen Pete (+9).

Super Legends (75+)

Like Yandell, Frank Costanzo went wire-to-wire in his win in the Super Legends division. Back-to-back sub-age rounds of 73 set Costanzo up with a five-shot cushion. His final round 78 was plenty good to hold onto a four-stroke victory and a tournament total of 8 over 224.

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Top-ranked Vance Welch, Walker Taylor share lead at 2023 Golfweek Senior National Championship

Talking to his daughter before the round, Vance Welch found out he is going to be a grandfather again.

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Vance Welch’s day was already made before he even hit a practice shot before his second round at the 2023 Golfweek Senior National Championship at the Grandover Resort (East Course) in Greensboro, North Carolina.

Talking to his daughter before the round, Welch found out he is going to be a grandfather again, this time for a baby girl due in October.

“That just put me in a happy place,” he said. “It didn’t matter if I hit a bad shot today. What an awesome day today was when I found out I was going to have another grandchild.”

With a smile on his face, Welch may have been the happiest man to ever be over par for a round. One over through eight holes and seven back of the lead, his golf turned around when he holed out for an eagle on the par-5 18th.

Not looking back, the top-ranked player in Golfweek’s Senior Amateur Rankings closed out his second round with a bogey-free back nine 33, good for a 68 and share of the lead alongside 18-hole leader Walker Taylor (3 under).

With two wins under his belt on the season, Welch acknowledges he’ll have a target on his back during Wednesday’s final round. No matter what happens in Wednesday’s final round, Welch is excited for a post-round celebration.

“My girls live in Raleigh, about an hour away [from Greensboro]…as soon as I get finished tomorrow I’m going to go hug my daughter and rub her belly and hold my girls. Both of my daughters live in Raleigh so I’m looking forward to spending time with them tomorrow night.”

Paired with Welch in the final group are co-leader Walker Taylor and Carolinas Golf Association Hall of Fame member Paul Simson.

Taylor pulled out to a seven-shot lead halfway through the second round after a 3-under front nine. Coming back to the clubhouse at 4 over, Taylor slipped from solo command of the lead and now finds himself in the middle of a dogfight. Tied with Welch and holding a one-shot advantage over Simson, Taylor looks to settle unfinished business after letting the 2022 Golfweek Senior National Championship slip away from him last year.

Simson was back in typical form following a tough first round of 4 over.

“I was pretty disappointed with my round yesterday,” Simson said. “I played a lot better than that 76 and today quite honestly, I played about the same. But I made a few putts and I holed a sand wedge on the 13th hole for my second eagle of the week.”

Out in 4 under, Simson was able to post another red number on his way back in to card a 5-under 67, right in the thick of things at 1 under and two back of the leaders.

North Carolina’s Sherrill Brent is also in the mix at 1 under. Improving upon his even-round start, Brent will lead the way for the penultimate group and look to apply pressure ahead of the final group. His playing partners Rick Cloninger and Michael Arasin both vie for the championship at even par total.

Super Seniors (65-69)

Randy King and Bob Edens look to duke it out in the Super Senior age division. Both at 2 over par and improving upon their first-round scores, the pair have a three-shot lead on the rest of the field.

Legends (70-74)

First-round leader Charley Yandell commands the leaderboard through 36 holes. With one of just four sub-par rounds in Tuesday’s action, Yandell carded a 2-over 74 but still enjoys a five-shot cushion as he looks to go wire-to-wire.

Super Legends (75+)

Sharing the lead after day one alongside Bill Engel, Frank Costanzo’s steady play through the second round has earned him a five-shot advantage with 18 holes to play. Carding consecutive rounds of 73, Costanzo searches for the win on Wednesday.

Vance Welch, Jeff Burda, George Walker, John Seehausen take home wins at drama-filled Golfweek Senior Amateur

There was no shortage of drama at the 2023 Golfweek Senior Amateur.

The Firecliff course at the Desert Willow Golf Resort in Palm Desert, California, played host to one of the more dramatic finishes in Golfweek Senior Amateur history, with two of the events needing a playoff to decide things.

Vance Welch outlasted four others in a wild playoff.

Jeff Burda was dominant in the Super Senior division.

George Walker overcame a snowman on the scorecard earlier in the week.

John Seehausen defeats a former NBA star to win the Super Legends division.

Here’s more on each of the four divisions:

Senior Division (55-64)

Five players in the senior division ended up tied at 2 over following 54 holes. 36-hole co-leaders Tommy Brennan and Kirk Maynord both slipped from the top rung of the leaderboard following rounds of 4-over 76 to find themselves in a five man dog fight for the title.

The three challengers were all coming of sub-par rounds with Loren Lopeman having the hottest hand following a 4-under 68 to earn a spot in the playoff.

After playing the par-4 1st hole, Mike Combs bowed out with a bogey. The four remaining players then headed to the par-4 9th where Loperman and Brennan were eliminated.

Just as the sun was setting over the San Jacinto mountains, Vance Welch won the championship with a par on the par-3 8th. Welch, a Maryland native, improved each day en route to the win using rounds of 75, 72 and closing with a final 71 to backdoor his way to the win.

Super Senior (65-69)

Jeff Burda didn’t just play this week. He dominated.

The lone super senior that was exempted into last year’s U.S. Senior Amateur ran laps around not just his age bracket, but the entire field.

The So Cal native built a seven stroke lead with back-to-back rounds of 70 but saved his most impressive round for last. His bogey free final round 64 was the lowest score to par all week across all age groups and was six shots off of the all-time scoring record of 18 under.

Curtis Worley carded a final round 71 to secure a solo second place finish at 4 over while Scott Masingill rounded out the podium with a 5-over performance on the week.

Legend Division (70-74)

Legend George Walker had himself quite a roller coaster of a week.

Opening the tournament with four consecutive birdies, Walker ended his first round with an eight for a three-way tie for the 18-hole lead. After a second round 76, Walker trailed the leader, Fred Clark, by four shots heading into the final round.

Repeating his hot start from Thursday, Walker birdied the first four holes. Unlike Thursday, however, Walker was able to close out his round strong and avenged his snowman on 18 with a birdie to capture the championship and win by two shots.

Fred Clark finished second at 2 under for tournament while Patrick Rohan finished third at 2 over.

Super Legend (75+)

Another playoff occurred, this time in the 75+ Super Legend division. John Seehausen and former NBA star Jack Marin were both tied at 7 over through 54 holes.

Losing a playoff in this event two years ago, Marin was once again a bridesmaid as Seehausen defeated him in a one-hole playoff to take home the championship.

If you think you have what it takes to play against some of. the best senior amateur players from across the country check out the Golfweek Senior Amateur schedule here.

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