GRANITEVILLE - Scott Brown's first Regions Cup victory didn't come easy Sunday. The North Augustan had to shoot the day's low round, withstand a spectacular late putting performance by Rusty Flanders and then make an eagle on the first playoff hole.
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When it was over, the 20-year-old Brown was the winner of the 40th annual Gordon Uhl/Golf Capital Invitational at Midland Valley Country Club.
Brown, who trailed by two shots entering the final round, shot 3-under-par 68 on Sunday to finish at 2-under 140, which was matched by Flanders (70-70), the 1998 winner of this tournament.
In the sudden death playoff, which started on the par-5 10th hole, Brown knocked his 8-iron second shot to 6 feet from the hole. After Flanders two-putted for birdie from 35 feet, Brown made his downhill eagle putt.
"It feels good to win," said Brown, who had finished second in two of the past three Regions Cup events, dating back to 2002. "This tournament has one of the best fields of the year. To beat this caliber of players out here this week was good."
Flanders was a wizard with his putter on the smooth Midland Valley greens. On the 17th hole, he rolled in a 28-foot birdie putt to take a one-shot lead over Brown, who had just finished his round.
A par on the par-4 final hole would have given the 37-year-old Flanders his third career Regions Cup victory, but he was in trouble from the start.
He blew his tee shot into the left woods, then hit his next shot in the right greenside bunker. Flanders then bladed the bunker shot 30 yards over the green. From there, he hit his fourth shot into a hill and let it roll onto the green, leaving him a 15-footer for bogey and a spot in the playoff.
Flanders made the putt, just as Midland Valley member Tommy Carpenter told Brown he would.
"I told Scott, 'you better be ready for a playoff - Rusty made that same putt in the club championship to force a playoff with me,"' said Carpenter, who lost the playoff to Flanders.
"I kind of knew he was going to make it," Brown said. "When it left the putter, you could see it was going in."
"I went from looking like I couldn't play to making an up-and-down from the trash can," Flanders said.
On the playoff hole, Flanders almost made his 35-foot eagle putt, but it went right of the hole at the end.
"I've never seen it do that," said Flanders, who is the general manager, a co-owner and the golf course superintendent at Midland Valley. "I'll be putting that one in the next few days."
Flanders was wild off the tee Sunday, hitting just four fairways, but his putter kept bailing him out.
"I was everywhere," Flanders said. "I didn't deserve to win. I was lucky to have an opportunity to win."
Brown, who finished second in the season-opening Regions Cup event at the Augusta Municipal Golf Course, played a solid final round with five birdies and two bogeys.
The victory was worth 75 Regions Cup points for Brown, who passed Chip Whitaker as the points leader through two tournaments. Brown has 125 points to 91 for Whitaker, who finished tied for eighth Sunday (74-73-147). At the end of the eight-tournament series, the points leader is the player of the year.
"To finish No. 1, that was my goal at the beginning of the year," Brown said.
In the senior division, first-round leader Mike Jackson held on for his third career senior division victory. Jackson, who opened with 69, shot 75 on Sunday and beat Charles Hartline (72-73), Michael Benham (73-72) and Charlie Busbee (73-72) by one shot. The seniors played a par-72 course.
"I hit the ball better today, but didn't putt as well," Jackson said.
Reach David Westin at (706) 724-0851.
