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When major championship golf began in the late 1800s, the contests were heavily dominated by English and Scottish golfers.
It wasn't until the 1920s that Americans began to win, and even dominate, major championship play. Over the past several decades, Americans have continued to win the majority of these events despite a significant rise in the number of talented international golfers.
With that said, I was surprised to learn that this was the first year for an American sweep of all four professional majors in more than 40 years. The winners this year were Scottie Scheffer (Masters), Bryson DeChambeau (U.S. Open) and Xander Schaufele (PGA Championship, British Open).
The last time an American sweep like this happened was in 1982. I can still remember watching most of the action way back then as I was just a young kid getting hooked on the game. The winners that year were Craig Stadler (Masters), Tom Watson (U.S. Open, British Open) and Raymond Floyd (PGA Championship).
Patriotic Americans can look for yet another big win this season when the Olympic golf competition is decided this week. Competing on the men's side for our country will be Scottie Scheffler, Xander Schaufele, Wyndham Clark and Collin Morikawa. Go USA!
Fink/Fink
I was just one of many golfers, and golf fans, who watched the father/son duo of Artie and Derek Fink win last week's Iron Masters Classic. It was the first time the pair teamed up in a major local two-ball, and the new team certainly didn't disappoint.
Playing against a field that included the area's best golfers, Fink & Fink outlasted everyone to finish three shots clear of the field. While these paragraphs may describe the final result, it's hard to put into words just how emotional the victory was, seeing the bond of a father and son, competing and winning, in a sport they both love. When the tournament ended, there were few dry eyes around the 18th green.
Claret Jug
The claret jug that winners take home from the British Open each year is certainly one of the most iconic trophies in all of sports. This original silver cup is engraved with every winner's name (back to 1860) and is given to the British Open champ to keep for an entire year.
In addition to this, every champion is given a replica trophy (90% the size of the original) to keep for good. According to Golf Digest, one of these prestigious claret jugs (Gary Player's 1974 trophy) was recently sold through a respected online auction house.
Player's Open trophy (won at Royal Lytham & St. Anne's) started out with an opening bid of $5,000 and continued over 11 days, and 39 bids, before the auction was finally decided. The winning bid for Player's 1974 trophy turned out to be a whopping $481,068.
115 years ago
During the first week of August in 1909, the clubhouse at Nittany Country Club in Mingoville, Centre County, was destroyed by fire.
The building, described as one of the best-appointed in the state, was equipped with its own electric lights, a steam-heating system and a fully-operating water system (a new clubhouse was eventually rebuilt on the original site at the cost of $12,000).
Ken Love covers local golf for the Mirror. He can be reached at GLTR777@atlanticbb.net.