Steve Humphrey went wire-to-wire at Kingsway Country Club

As has been the case throughout much of the last two weeks, the weather was a major factor. The start of 2018 has seen unusually cold and windy weather that wiped out the first round of both the Harder Hall Invitational and the Women's South Atlantic Amateur, and caused higher-than-usual scoring at the New Year's Invitational, the Old Corkscrew Senior Invitational and now the Gateway Senior.

Humphrey's opening-round 71 gave him a three-shot lead, and after that the leaderboard didn't really change much. Humphrey finished the tournament with rounds of 77-75, while his two nearest chasers, James Starnes (Fort Myers, FL) and Keith Decker (Martinsville, VA), both shot 74-76-75 to stay close but two shots short.

Steve Groom (Raytown, MO) shot a 71 in the final round, which was the low round of the day by four shots, to move into fourth place at 10-over 226, three shots behind Humphrey.

David Holmes (Sutton, MA) and Rokki Rogan (Fort Myers, FL) finished tied for fifth at 15-over 231.

In the Super Senior Division, Tim Miller (Venice, FL) defeated Mike Bell (Sarasota, FL) in a battle of former Indiana residents. Both entered the final round tied for the lead, but Miller shot a final-round 74 to win by five shots over Bell (79). Charlie Green (Bristol, VA) was third at 15-over 231, seven shots behind Miller.

John Armstrong (Frostburg, MD) and Paul Schlachter (Bridgeville, PA) both shot 75 to tie for fourth at 232.

In the Legends Division, John Blank (Frostburg, MD) beat out John Cuomo (Venice, FL) for the second time in a week. Earlier this week at the Gateway Senior Invitational, Blank had a big lead and held on for a two-shot win. This time, Blank overcame a three-shot deficit with a final-round 70, the lowest score in any division for the tournament, to edge Cuomo (74) by a single shot. Blank's three round total was 6-over 222.

George Washburn (Frederick, MD) finished third, six shots behind Blank.

The Senior Florida Swing continues on Tuesday at the Golfweek Senior Player-of-the-Year Classic, to be played at the Hammock Beach Resort in Palm Coast.

DAY TWO RECAP

Steve Humphrey (Lexington, KY) maintained his lead at the Kingsway Senior Invitational on Saturday, as the weather sent scores soaring at Kingsway Country Club.

A cold front blew in and brought a sustained north wind that blew all day and put extra teeth into an already difficult golf course. Humphrey shot a 5-over 77 and only lost one shot off of his lead, which was three to start the day. At 4-over 148, he is the only player in the Senior Division to break 150 for two rounds.

James Starnes (Fort Myers, FL) and Keith Decker (Martinsville, VA) both started the day in second and both shot 76 to get within two shots of Humphrey with one round to go.

Dave Clement (Henderson, KY) shot the day's low round, a 2-over 74, to get into fourth spot at 8-over 152, four shots back.

A trio of golfers--David Holmes (Sutton, MA), John Vollmer (Rockville, MD) and Steve Groom (Raytown, MO)--is tied for fifth at 11-over 155, seven shots behind Humphrey.

In the Super Senior Division, two Florida transplants from Indiana are tied for the lead. Mike Bell (Sarasota, FL) and Tim Miller (Venice, FL) have identical scores of 76-74 to sit two shots ahead of David Crocker (Bluffton, SC).

Bill Barnes, another Florida resident originally from Indiana, has the day's low round, an even-par 72, to pull into a fifth place tie, five shots behind the leaders.

In the Legends Division, John Cuomo (Venice, FL) maintained his lead despite a second-round 77, as his nearest competitors could do no better. George Washburn (Frederick, MD) and John Casstevens (Glen Allen, VA) both matched Cuomo's 77 to stay two shots back, with John Blank (Frostburg, MD) falling to fourth after a 79.

FIRST ROUND RECAP

Steve Humphrey (Lexington, KY) opened the Kingsway Senior Invitational with a 1-under 71 to take a three-shot lead at Kingsway Country Club.

The weather was a major factor, as winds gusted to 35 miles per hour on an overcast day in southwest Florida. Humphrey was the only player in any of the three divisions to break par on the day.

The Kingsway Senior Invitational is the third tournament in the Senior Florida Swing, preceded by the Old Corkscrew Invitational and the Gateway Senior, which concluded just two days ago. Humphrey comes into the tournament in good form, having tied for fourth at the Kingsway. He finished as the runner-up in last year's tournament.

James Starnes (Fort Myers, FL), who lost in a playoff at Old Corkscrew, shot a 2-over 74 and is in a tie for second with Keith Decker (Martinsville, VA), who is playing his first senior event of the season. Decker won three events last year and finished 2017 as the 4th ranked senior in the AmateurGolf.com Senior Rankings.

No one else in the Senior Division shot lower than 77. Gray Tuttle (Pinehurst, NC), Rokki Rogan (Ft. Myers, FL) and Terry Werner (Dyer, IN) all sit at that number.

Last year's Kingsway champion Michael Occi (Columbia, MD) withdrew from the tournament.

In the Super Senior Division, Bob Yow (Clinton, NC) leads after a 75, with three Florida-based players--Bob Casamento (Palm Court, FL), Mike Bell (Sarasota, FL) and Tim Miller (Venice, FL)--tied for second at 76. As in the Senior Division, less than half of the field was able to break 80 in the difficult scoring conditions on Friday.

The Legends fared a little better, with John Cuomo (Venice, FL) leading the way with an even-par 72. John Blank (Frostburg, MD), who held off Cuomo by two shots to win at Gateway, is just one behind with a 73, while George Washburn (Frederick, MD) and John Casstevens (Glen Allen, VA) tied for third at 2-over 74.