Tom Lewis destroys Berkhamsted Trophy field

British and English Boy Champion Tom Lewis was in record-breaking form as he demolished the field in the 51st Berkhamsted Trophy.
Exactly a week after helping England retain the European Nations Cup in Spain, Lewis carded rounds of 67 and 66 for a nine-under-par 133, the lowest ever aggregate, and a five stroke winning margin over Wiltshire’s Ben Loughrey.
“This is the third time I’ve played the Berkhamsted and on the two previous occasions I’ve messed up one round. But this time it all came right for me,” said Lewis, the first Hertfordshire player to win the title for 17 years.
In conditions similar to those sampled in Spain the previous week, sunny intervals with occasional showers, Lewis was a cut above the rest. “The time in Spain helped a lot,” he added. “I didn’t think I’d get into that team but spending time with some of the best England players definitely helped to sharpen up my game.”
He also felt his knowledge of the Berkhamsted course was another contributing factor. “I’ve played in a lot of events here and I know where the dangers are. But it is not a course that gives a lot of birdies. You have to work for them.”
He certainly did that. The 19-year-old from Welwyn Garden City (photo © Tom Ward) reeled off nine straight pars on the front nine of his morning round but came home in four-under 32 with an eagle, three birdies and just one dropped shot. In fact, he had only three bogeys in 36 holes, while his afternoon 66 from the tenth tee contained seven more birdies plus two three-putts.
But it was the manner of his play that stood out. He drove the ball well, peppered the pins with his approach shots, and would have secured even more birdies but for the tricky early-season greens. He was also able to play with the comfort of knowing that no one was making a threat to his supremacy, boy cap Max Smith carding the next best with 68 after a morning 75 which left him joint 12th.
Loughrey was only a shot behind Lewis at lunch but added 70 for second place on 138 while the home club’s Luke Colgate finished joint third on 139 with Andrew Shakespear from Five Lakes in Essex
.Final scores:
133 T Lewis (Welwyn Garden City) 67 66
138 B Loughrey (Wrag Barn) 68 70
139 L Colgate (Berkhamsted) 70 69, A Shakespear (Five Lakes) 70 69
140 R Smith (Notts) 71 69, T Hatton (Harleyford) 69 71
141 D Coupland (Boston) 71 70, M Wallace (Batchworth Park) 70 71
142 D Ginn (Sudbury) 73 69, A Wootton (Oxford City) 70 72, J Abbott (Fynn Valley) 69 73