This past Sunday, the team of Anthony DeGol and Sean Brannan captured the championship-flight trophy at the 33rd annual Down River Invitational tournament in Everett.

After Saturday’s opening round, Greg Ferguson and Andrew Ferguson were the leaders with an 8-under-par score of 64. The Fergusons, however, cooled off a bit on day two, shooting 70 to finish in fifth place.

Meanwhile, DeGol and Brannan, who opened with a 66, were locked in a final-round battle with Artie Fink Jr. and Todd Homan to see who would come out on top.

After the opening nine holes on Sunday, DeGol and Brannan’s 6-under-par score of 30 put them in the lead. Eventually, the pair reached the 17th tee late with their lead down to just one stroke, but birdies on the last two holes would secure the victory.

The final scoreboard showed DeGol and Brannan scoring rounds of 66 and 62 to finish the two days at 16-under-par, one shot ahead of Fink and Homan.

On a side note, the tournament finished on time despite threatening weather conditions that were present both days. The entire Down River staff did a great job conducting the tournament and preparing the course.

U.S. Open

The finish at the U.S. Open this past weekend included one of the most exciting endings I can ever remember watching.

J.J. Spaun, who overcame five bogeys in his first six holes, stood over a 64-foot putt on his final hole — and actually holed the shot to clinch a victory in the 125th U.S. Open held at nearby Oakmont Country Club.

Spaun’s winning score of 1-under, 279 ended up being the only sub-par total turned in by any golfer in the field.

After a long rain delay on Sunday, Spaun was one of the few players to post a strong finish, birdieing the final two holes en route to his unlikely victory.

In a post-round interview, Spaun revealed he had a rocky start to his Sunday.

One of his young daughters had suffered through the night with a stomach virus, and Spaun spent the very early hours of the morning scurrying to local pharmacies in search of something to ease her symptoms. What a dad!

Later that day, the entire Spaun family would enjoy a Father’s Day they’ll not soon forget.

Blair County Golf

Earlier this week, John Madey, owner and operator of the Blair County Golf and Driving Range, gave me a quick update of the expansion project at his Hollidaysburg-area facility.

Currently under construction is the addition of a Toptracer facility, a full-scale outdoor range that utilizes cameras and computer analysis to track and display ball flight data in real time.

Users will be able to play virtual golf courses, compete in various games and track their practice sessions in an ongoing manner. This Toptracker Range technology is associated with the popular TopGolf facilities that can now be found in most large, metropolitan areas, including Pittsburgh.

According to Madey, the construction and installation of his Toptracker system is going well. It is located adjacent to the existing conventional range, and there is a target date for completion by mid-summer.

50 years ago

During the third week of June in 1975, Bo DelGrosso and Bobby Sweitzer teamed up to win the 4th annual Sinking Valley Invitational golf tournament.

Played as a match-play event, DelGrosso and Sweitzer outlasted the team of Rhett Butler and Lou Ventura to take home the trophy. DelGrosso’s 18-foot birdie putt on the 15th hole clinched victory for the champs. It would be the first of many local best-ball wins for this dominant team.

Ken Love covers local golf for the Mirror. He can be reached at GLTR777@atlanticbb.net.