Henriques Trophy champion’s long game proves critical
Australian Matthew Lever recovered in time from a bout of food poisoning to put in a brilliant long-game display and win the fourth Northern Order of Merit event of the season at Hesketh on Sunday.
FORMAT: 36-hole stroke play
The Melbourne-based golfer moved away from England when he was 10 but in the Summer stays with his grandparents in Bolton so he can play the big events over here.
Unfortunately a rogue beef sandwich cost him his place at the Lytham Trophy the previous weekend having earlier finished 22nd at the West of England Open at Saunton, his first event since arriving from Australia.
However a couple of two-under-pars 70s were enough to secure him the Henriques Trophy, closing out three clear of Jack McPhail (Southport & Ainsdale). Lever hit 31 out of 36 greens in regulation and had 17 birdie putts inside 15 feet, converting eight of them.
RELATED: The 2023 Northern Order of Merit fixtures
“It was typical of what I normally do,” said the 20-year-old former Victoria Junior Masters champion and winner of last year’s Old Links Trophy in the Northern Order of Merit. “If I start holing putts then I normally go low. Today I didn’t hole anything longer than 10 feet so it could have been so much better.”
Hesketh employed a shotgun start with Lever (Bolton) starting at the seventh and he would trail McPhail by two at halfway. For the Southport and Ainsdale player an eagle at 18 was the undoubted highlight although he bogeyed two of his last three holes to drop back to four under for the round.
After lunch McPhail bogeyed five of his first eight holes while Lever got off to a great start on the par five seventh. He nearly holed out from 35 yards so a tap-in birdie got him to three under.
That became four at the 14th as he wedged it to a foot before dropping back with a three-putt bogey on 17.
He got that straight back at the next, firing a two iron from 240 yards to six feet at the 18th and, although he missed the eagle putt, the four meant he was well clear of McPhail.
A bogey at the par three second (his 14th) – in the morning he had birdied the 157-yarder – again highlighted his struggles with the putter but he did finally hole one from 10 feet at the fifth (his 17th).