Justin Arnt won his initial Lebanon County Amateur golf championship on Sunday. It took 36 holes, eight birdies, an eagle, six bogeys and 21 pars to get the job done, but it was nearly three decades in the making.

At Lebanon Valley Golf Course in Myerstown, Arnt’s experience and course knowlege certainly played key roles in capturing his first County Amateur crown. The fact that he had been close before helped him break through this time around.

With a healthy lead going into Sunday’s final round, Arnt played it smart and a little conservative, making the rest of the field come to him by posting a one-over par score of 72. He had certainly put himself in a great spot by firing a five-under-par score of 66 over his opening round.

Arnt had started his second round with bogeys on two of his first four holes, but then righted his ship with back-to-back birdies at Lebanon Valley’s par-five seventh hole and the par-four eighth hole. From there on out, he recorded pars on nine of his ten remaining holes to register a commanding six-stroke victory.

In 2017, Arnt had emerged victorious at the Lebanon County Better-Ball-of-Partners event with Skeet Wentling. But this County Amateur title represented one of the finest accomplishments in his still young career.

• Jeff Falk