Golfweek senior POY update: Super Legends division remains a tight race; Kevin VandenBerg continues Senior division runaway

This precocious successful nan season, nan apical players often person separated themselves successful Golfweek’s elder player-of-the-year races. And while that is surely nan lawsuit successful immoderate property groups, nan title remains tight successful nan Super Legends division. Only 110 points separates leader Johnny Blank of Frostburg, Maryland, from George Owens of Virginia Beach, Virginia.

Blank is trying to extremity a 3rd consecutive play arsenic nan Super Legends Player of nan Year. In 2023, he vanished 1,635 points up of Bill Engel of St. Augustine, Florida. Engel, the erstwhile Commander of nan White Sands Missile Range, is 830 points down Blank. John Osborne of Vero Beach, Florida, is wedged into that operation too, trailing Blank by only 380 points.

Blank has competed mostly successful nan Southeast this season, logging nan astir points for winning his section astatine nan SOS Spring Classic and Super Senior successful February.

Golfweek awards Player of nan Year honors for each of 4 property divisions: Senior, Super Senior, Legends and Super Legends. Winners will beryllium recognized Jan. 16 astatine nan Golfweek Player of nan Year Classic astatine Omni Orlando Resort astatine ChampionsGate.

In nan Super Senior division, top-ranked Jim Starnes has racked up galore of his 7,547 points successful nan Southeast arsenic well, but he has besides made 2 trips westbound pinch awesome results.

Starnes, of Fort Myers, Florida, leads Greg Goode, of Salina, Kansas, by 1,297 points. Starnes reaped large points for his victories early successful nan twelvemonth astatine nan Florida Azalea Senior and nan Lowcountry Senior Amateur. His trips westbound to nan Golfweek Senior Amateur successful Palm Desert, California, and nan Golfweek Pacific Northwest Senior successful Walla Walla, Washington, some produced top-5 finishes.

Starnes vanished 2023 3rd connected nan points database for his division, and successful 2016 he was named nan Senior Player of nan Year arsenic nan apical points-getter.

Golfweek National Senior Amateur Rankings

To declare a POY title is simply a labour of emotion that requires men for illustration Starnes to tee it up often and to play well. For Starnes, that intends 22 to 25 nationalist elder starts, positive a half twelve four-ball events and a fewer Florida State Golf Association events.

His has agelong been a sanction to cognize successful elder golf: Starnes qualified for nan U.S. Senior Amateur successful 2016 and 2021.

Perhaps nary 1 knows nan word “labor of love” amended than Kevin VandenBerg erstwhile it comes to winning player-of-the-year honors. VandenBerg has a astir 3,000-point lead successful nan Senior section and has POY honors each but locked up for nan 2nd consecutive year.

VandenBerg aged into elder title erstwhile he turned 55 successful 2021. He has not slowed down since. In 2023, VandenBerg, of Pulaski, New York, teed it up successful title 44 times between Golfweek senior events, Society of Senior events, section tournaments and USGA qualifiers.

He’ll hit that number this year. VandenBerg told Golfweek he has already competed 44 times – finishing first, first, second, 2nd and 3rd successful his past 5 starts – and has six much events planned earlier nan extremity of nan almanac year.

VandenBerg will beryllium inducted into nan Michigan Golf Hall of Fame connected Oct. 27 for a profession that includes his expanse (in nan summertime of 2000) of Michigan’s 3 awesome amateur tournaments: nan Michigan Amateur, Golf Association of Michigan Championship and nan Michigan Mid-Amateur.

In nan Legends division, Bev Hargraves of Little Rock, Arkansas, leads Don Donatoni of Malvern, Pennsylvania, by 950 points. Hargraves notably won his section astatine nan 2024 Golfweek Player of nan Year Classic.