With the field cut down to the top 76 contenders, Olde Stone finally showed its true character.

Windy conditions and rigorous pin locations brought an end to the birdie fest from the first 36 holes. The leaderboard saw plenty of movement, but the top of the leaderboard remains the same.

Patrick Cover is the leader in the clubhouse for the second straight day with a five-stroke lead ahead of Saturday’s championship round of the Southern Amateur at The Club at Olde Stone. Cover shot a 2-under 70 to follow up his day two course record 63 from Thursday.

The UNC-Wilmington graduate sat atop the leaderboard for the entire round while the rest of the field moved up and down the board.

“This is kind of how I’m accustomed to seeing Olde Stone play, that’s for sure,” said Vanderbilt junior and Olde Stone club member John Augenstein, who shot 72 and sits tied for ninth.

Cover managed the wind as well as anyone by holding even through the front nine. He started the back with two straight birdies, bogeyed on No. 15 and closed the round with a birdie on No. 18 – a hole he’s birdied on every attempt this tournament.

“It played a significant amount different,” Cover said. “Different enough for you to change a couple of different clubs off the tees. If you didn’t change clubs, sometimes you’d have to change the line you were taking on the front nine. … I was just happy I played really consistent golf.”

The course was ripe for low scores during the first 36 holes with hardly any wind. With severe weather moving in late Friday night, winds picked up close to 14 mph with gusts up to 20 mph. Combine the winds with challenging pin marks and the field moved close, but couldn’t touch Cover.

Austin Squires felt that shift in full. A 67 on Wednesday followed by a 2-under 70 positioned him tied for seventh. Squires dropped on the leaderboard by shooting 6-over on the par-5s for a 7-over 79. Squires went triple bogey on the par-5 No. 7 and double bogey on the par-4 15th. He’ll enter the championship round 14 shots off the lead tied for 34th.

“(Wind) was a huge factor because this is more of a target golf course,” Squires said. “It’s harder to play in the wind than some are. That was a tough aspect and it changed a lot of clubs off the tees and I didn’t have my best stuff, so it exposed it for sure.”

Texas A&M junior Brandon Smith, playing in the group in front of Cover, came closer than anyone else to contend for the lead. Smith shot 2-under on the front nine to move within one shot of Cover, but three bogeys on the back dropped him to 8-under for the tournament and tied for fifth.

“It really takes one shot for the momentum to swing the other direction,” Smith said. “I think all the birdie holes are on the back nine and I was happy to turn in a 2-under. Just a couple of things you can get away with when it’s not windy, you can’t when it’s blowing 15-20 mph like it was today. You’ve got to really take care of your golf ball on a course like this when the wind gets blowing.”

Chasing Cover is a three-way tie for second at 9-under between S.M. Lee (Buford, Ga.), Eric Ansett (Spokane, Wash.) and Taylor Bibbs (San Diego, Calif.). A winner of the North Carolina Open and already a qualifier for the U.S. Amateur at Pebble Beach in August, Cover doesn’t plan to play it safe in chasing the title Saturday.

“I’m not trying to play defensive because I have a five-shot lead,” Cover said. “I’m trying to keep attacking. I don’t know if tomorrow is going to be as windy as it was today. Just keep attacking and keep hitting solid shots off the tee, that’s the most important thing.

“It’s been pretty solid so far this tournament.”