McNary’s Colby Sullivan wins Oregon 6A Golf Crown
The senior shoots three-under par on day two of the OSAA event
It was now or never for McNary’s Colby Sullivan.
After moving to Oregon from Virginia his freshman year, Sullivan was out of any more chances to win the state’s biggest prep golf tournament.
He finished fourth last year, after struggling on the second day of the 2022 tournament.
This year, Colby played what he described as “some of the best rounds of his life.”
Sullivan—one of two McNary boys players to advance to state—recorded a two-under par, 70 on Monday, putting him just one shot off the lead on the Emerald Valley Course near Creswell.
Because his Celtics squad didn’t advance a full team to the tournament, he and junior teammate Elijah Clendening played early on day two. And Colby says his results were decidedly positive, considering the course conditions.
“The greens were very fast so I felt like my score today was better than my round on Monday when I shot a stroke better,” he said.
“My putter saved me on the backside today as I got up and down on 5 holes on the back nine.”
But having to play earlier than the rest of the field made waiting torturous for Colby.
“After I made a birdie on 18, I felt really good that I had done all I could out there but wasn’t sure if I had won the state title or not,” says Sullivan about the pins and needs situation.
“I was literally waiting for the last group to come in to confirm I had won.”
McNary head golf coach Brad Lomax—who had accompanied the girls team to their tournament in Banks, said he was supremely confident about Colby’s chances.
“Based on his experience growing up with a PGA professional (father Chip Sullivan), his work ethic and his calm demeanor, I felt very strongly that Colby was going to win the state title.”
Sullivan’s championship finish makes him the first McNary golfer to win the crown since 1970, when the Celts’ Jeff McRae finish tied for the individual title, and McNary finished second as a team.
The last mid-Willamette Valley golfer to win the state title as medalist was Dallas golfer Jeff Dunn—who moved on to be a standout golfer and basketball player at Western Baptist College (Corban).
Elijah Clendening finished 12 strokes off the pace, which provides some promise for next year’s McNary boys team. Lomax says there are five or six underclassmen poised to improve their game on a consistent basis with help from the coaching staff.
As for his future, Sullivan says he will take a little time off to relax, but not much.
“I will be playing a few golf events before I leave in early August,” says Colby.
“I will also help out with the youth camp that our McNary golf team puts on, and look forward to spending time in Central Oregon with family and friends.”
Sullivan will play golf at Southeastern Louisiana University, whose campus is in Hammond, LA.
GOLF NOTES:
Colby Sullivan’s low score of three under par, 141, was two strokes ahead of the 6A Boys runner-up, Forest Grove senior Ka’ena Kaulia.
Lake Oswego and Tigard finished 1-2 in the 6A Boys team standings with cumulative scores of 610 and 617 respectively. The highest finish among CVC schools came from West Salem, which had a score of 691, good for 14th place.
In the 6A Girls tournament, Jesuit and Lake Oswego were the top performing teams. CVC squads Sprague (10th) and West Salem (13th) were the best performers for Salem-Keizer. Sprague junior Emily Keel was ninth in individual play, with a two day total of 159.
Cascade junior golfer Maddie Dustin was also noteworthy—shooting a 2-over 73 Tuesday at the Trysting Tree Golf Club in Corvallis to finish at 3-over 145. Her performance allowed her to share the 4A/3A/2A/1A Girls crown with Ava Austria of Catlin Gabel.
Great article Mark! Thank you.
Thank you Mark for the good article!