The 2022 Golfweek Senior National Championship leaderboard looks like it could be a preview of what’s to come at Brookline this weekend.
The East Course at Grandover Resort in Greensboro, North Carolina, is playing tough for some of the best senior amateurs in the country this week. A total of 33 golfers over four different age divisions have teed it up this week with just one man still in red numbers two-thirds of the way through the championship.
Super legend John Blank remains the overall leader at 1 under after a second-round 73. Chalking up four bogeys in his first five holes, Blank got his feet underneath him with his first par of the day coming on the par 5 6th. Regaining his senses, Blank went 2 under through his final 13 holes, resulting in a seven-shot lead in the Super Legend division.
The young guns flexed their muscles as the cream of the crop rose back to the top of the leaderboard in the senior division. Golfweek No. 2 Kevin VandenBerg trailed by six heading into moving day.
“I never quit,” VandenBerg told Golfweek. “If I tee it up it doesn’t matter what position I’m in. I feel like I have the game to make a run for the title.”
It wasn’t easy for the Michigander. With five bogeys on his card on the day, VandenBerg clawed and chipped away at the deficit thanks to a back-nine 2-under 34. He now sits atop the leaderboard in a two-way tie for first at 5 over alongside Steve Maddalena.
Maddalena, a fellow Michigander, won’t make it easy for VandenBerg to run away with the victory. A three-time Michigan Amateur winner and a member of the Golf Association of Michigan Hall of Fame (Class of 2007), Maddalena has plenty of game to match VandenBerg’s experience on the Golfweek stage.
The two share a lead at 5 over with round one leader Walker Taylor hot on their heels at 6 over. Guy Child and Larry Nunez round out the top five at 8 over and 11 over, respectively.
In the super senior division, the four-man flight is a three-man race with Larry Vaughan and Tim Vigotsky looking to track down Stephen Fox, who followed up his opening 1 over with an even-par 72.
Vigotsky earned low-round of the day honors with a 1-under 71, good not just for his age division, but the entire field. He now sits just one back of Fox at 2 over for the week and Vaughan lurks stage left at 4 over for the tournament.
Another dual will take place in the Legends division as Pete Allen and Charley Yandell have matched each other through 36 holes at 6 over. In third place, Bev Hargraves looks to apply some pressure as he trails by just three strokes.
Set with the difficult task of chasing down John Blank in the Super Legend division is Barry Flaer. After rounds of 77 and 73, Flaer will need to continue to improve his score in order to make up the seven-stroke deficit that lies between him and Blank.
Four champions will be crowned following Wednesday’s action with the winner of the senior division earning himself 1,200 Player of the Year points.
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