Robert Coles is in pole position for a second Legends Tour victory, but the leaderboard remains tightly bunched with 16 players within four strokes of his lead. The 27th Swiss Seniors Open is poised for a blockbuster finish on a course where a round in the low-60s is very possible.
Coles, who won the Staysure PGA Seniors Championship last year, had two birdies in his first four holes before doing exactly the same as he had done yesterday for the three holes from the 5th – going bogey-bogey-birdie. He made his third bogey of the week at the 9th to make the turn in 33.
He’s played the back nine well all week and picked up shots at the 13th, 15th and 16th holes to come home in 32 and complete his 65 for a -10 total. Last year’s Order of Merit number nine also played the back nine in a bogey-free 32 on day one.
“I’m delighted,” said Coles. “It’s always good when you shoot a reasonable score the first day and then you follow it up – and I haven’t been doing that. I think my first-round scores are far better than my second, so that was nice to do today. I played pretty steady yesterday, and I was pretty steady again today. I wasn’t knocking flags out, but I did my job pretty well most of the time. I made a couple of errors, which I wasn’t too pleased about, and I lost my way a little bit in the middle of the round, but I managed to pull it round on the back nine and finish quite strongly.
“I’ve got to keep doing the same thing and playing my game the way I’ve played the last two days. It’s a race to the line. I know it’s tight, and one or two shots is nothing around here. You can get on a run, so you’ve got to keep your foot down and keep going.”
Keith Horne, Mark Brown and Van Phillips are his nearest challengers at -9. Horne won last week’s Reignwood Legends Championship in China and he could go to the top of the Order of Merit with a win in Switzerland. The South African matched the best round of the week with a bogey-free 64.
Brown is enjoying a very impressive debut with rounds of 66 and 65. The New Zealander won the 2008 Johnnie Walker Classic on the DP World Tour and he’s looking to become the first player to win on their Legends Tour debut since Scott Hend at the 2023 WINSTONgolf Senior Open.
Phillips finished 5th in China last week for his best result of the season so far, and he’s continued his momentum at Bad Ragaz. Last year’s WINSTONgolf Senior Open winner had an eventful front nine with an eagle, three birdies and two bogeys, and added a couple more red numbers on the way home to also record a 65.
Thomas Gögele slipped from a share of the lead into tied-5th courtesy of a double-bogey on the 18th. He also had five birdies and one bogey in a 68. The German is joined on -8 by 2018 champion Jean-François Remesy, three-time Hotelplanner Tour winner Phillip Archer and last year’s runner-up, Bradley Dredge.
Defending champion Jarmo Sandelin is alongside his compatriot Mikael Lundberg, three shots off the lead on -7. Sandelin had five birdies and two bogeys in a round of 65, while Lundberg, who was tied for the lead after round one, could only muster a three-birdie 71 today.
There’s a six-way tie for 11th on -6. Former winner Philip Golding, Anders Hansen, Markus Brier, David Shacklady, Patrik Sjöland and Andrew Marshall all still have a chance to get their hands on the beautiful crystal trophy with a low one on Sunday. The half-dozen players at -5, including 2023 victor Adilson da Silva, will also be maintaining hope of forcing themselves into contention.
Visit www.legendstour.com to see the full leaderboard and final round tee times, and for more information about the Swiss Seniors Open at Golf Club Bad Ragaz, Switzerland.
