VanDolah leads Watson Challenge at Indian Hills. Tom Watson tees off 9:50 a.m. Friday
Zach VanDolah is the leader through one round of the annual Watson Challege golf tournament at Indian Hills Country Club.
VanDolah fired a 6-under 64 on a picture-perfect Thursday, stacking seven birdies and 10 pars against just one bogey on the par 70 track in Mission Hills.
“I made everything I looked at,” he said wryly.
VanDolah, who golfed in college at Central Missouri and won the Kansas City Match Play Championship at Swope Park a couple of weeks ago, will be chased during Friday’s second round by the likes of Davis Cooper, a Kansas Jayhawks golfer who shot a bogey-free 65 on Thursday that featured some smart wedge play around the greens.
In third place as the second round of 18 begins on Friday will be Justin Wingerter, a former Blue Valley Southwest and current Southern Illinois golfer who opened with a 4-under 66.
Tom Watson, the legendary Kansas City namesake of this tournament, recorded an opening-round 74 and tees off at 9:50 a.m. Friday.
A member of the World Golf Hall of Fame, Watson, 72, has won the 54-hole, three-day tournament five times.
The tourney field for 2022 consists of 50 men and, for the first time, a woman: Overland Park native Gianna Augustine, the first female to play in the Watson Challenge, shot an opening-round 76.
Founded in 2007, the Watson Challenge benefits The First Tee of Greater Kansas City. It typically features the best professionals and amateurs living in the greater Kansas City golf community.
Baseball Hall of Famer and former longtime Kansas City Royals star George Brett, a close friend of Watson’s for many years, caddied on Thursday for Prairie Village’s Kevin Ward, who opened with a 74.
Round 2 begins Friday morning, with the first tee times scheduled for 8:30 a.m.
First-round scores
At Indian Hills C.C., par 70
1 Zach VanDolah 64
2 Davis Cooper 65
3 Justin Wingerter 66
T4 Charlie Hillier 67
T4 Michael Letzig 67
6 Sean Dougherty 68
T7 Robert Russell 70
T7 Clay Devers 70
T9 Jeff Sedorcek 71
T9 Wade Binfield 71
T9 Joe Bultman 71
T9 Robert Wilkin 71
T9 Bret Burgmeier 71
T9 Michael Winslow 71
T15 Chase Lucas 72
T15 Calvin Dillon 72
T15 Liam Coughlin 72
T15 Will Harding 72
T15 Andy Spencer 72
T20 Connor Knabe 73
T20 Jeremy Dear 73
T20 Nicklaus Mason 73
T23 Kyle Capps 74
T23 Kevin Ward 74
T23 Sam Parrott 74
T23 Tom Watson 74
T23 Austin Jarchow 74
T23 Alex Springer 74
T23 Wes Buntenbach 74
T23 Austin Hardison 74
T23 Ryan Argotsinger 74
T23 Chris Mabry 74
T23 Sean Cleary 74
T34 Zachary Dittmer 75
T34 Chance Rinkol 75
T34 Drew Carlson 75
T34 Jackson Foth 75
T34 Steve Groom 75
T39 Gianna Augustine 76
T39 Jeff Sheppard 76
T41 Andrew Hatten 77
T41 Ryan Eckroat 77
T43 Mike Ricket 78
T43 Andy Rumbaugh 78
T43 Tyler Dunn 78
T46 Otto Zinn 79
T46 Dave Cunningham 79
T46 Ryne Fisher 79
T46 Michael Maki 79
T50 Ed Brown 80
T50 Brad Volker 80
This story was originally published June 2, 2022 at 8:15 PM.