ST. SIMONS ISLAND, Ga. – The No. 11/10-ranked Vanderbilt men’s golf team made moves on moving day at the 2026 SEC Championship, as the Commodores carded 9-under 271 in Round 2 to climb up four spots on the leaderboard and end Thursday in ninth place.
Vandy had four golfers finish under par in Round 2. Starting the day on Hole 10, the Commodores caught fire on their back nine, as Vanderbilt scored 6-under during the second half of Round 2 to post the fourth-best team score of the day. The Dores head into Round 3 a stroke off the cutline to advance to match play, as Vanderbilt holds a two-round score of 11-under 549.
“I’m super proud of our boys today,” said Scott Limbaugh, Thomas F. Roush, M.D., and Family Vanderbilt Men’s Golf Head Coach. “After we didn’t finish the way we wanted to on our back nine yesterday, the boys really hung in there today to give us this opportunity tomorrow. That’s really what you want, an opportunity on the final day of stroke play. They were tough out there, and that’s what we’ve talked about. Courage is contagious, and our guys were courageous on our back nine today. I’m thrilled with them for that.”
Senior Wells Williams and freshman Will Hartman led the way for Vandy on moving day, as each golfer finished Round 2 at 3-under 67.
Williams sits inside the top five on the player leaderboard after 36 holes of play. He holds a two-round score of 9-under 131, which puts him in a tie for fourth place. The West Point, Mississippi, native’s par-3 score of 3-under is tied for the lead through two rounds of the SEC Championship, while the senior is also tied for the third-best par-5 score at 4-under.
Hartman posted his second-straight under-par round in his first SEC Championship event. The freshman went 3-under 67 on Tuesday and went bogey-free on his back nine in Round 2. The freshman opens Round 3 in a tie for 21st, holding a two-day total of 4-under 136.
Freshman Jon Ed Steed carded 2-under 68 on Thursday, while junior Chase Nevins finished his round at 1-under 69. Both Steed and Nevins sit in a tie for 53rd after each carded 1-over 141 over the first two rounds of play.
“Wells, Chase and Will were all over par early in their rounds when the wind wasn’t blowing, and I’m super proud of them for not panicking,” expressed Limbaugh. “They trusted the process and the work they’ve been putting in to battle back into it as the day went along. It was a really big round for Wells. He had his first bogey of the tournament on Hole 1 today, but he hung in there and kept doing his thing and had a strong finish.”
No. 1-ranked Auburn sits in first place at the end of Round 2 of the 2026 SEC Championship, as the Tigers hold a 36-hole score of 27-under 533 and take a five-stroke lead over the field into Friday’s final round of stroke play. Auburn’s Jackson Koivun is in first place on the player leaderboard at 12-under 128, as the two-time SEC individual champion takes a two-stroke lead into Round 3.
Vanderbilt heads into Friday one stroke off the cutline for match play at the SEC Championship. The top eight teams at the end of stroke play advance to the quarterfinal matches on Saturday morning. The Commodores tee off Round 3 at 7 a.m. CT from Hole 10. Fans can follow along with live scoring by clicking the link here.
“Tomorrow presents an opportunity for our team, and we’re excited for it,” stated the Vanderbilt head coach. “This is the SEC Championship, and we need to be ready to bring the energy. Our fans had energy today, and we’re going to need more of that tomorrow. What we choose to focus on in hard moments is ultimately who we are as competitors. It will be a big day for our team, and I’m looking forward to it.”
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