Tom Thurloway, from Chartham Park in East Grinstead, enjoyed a perfect dress rehearsal of a new life in Florida, when he won the Walton Heath Trophy for the Michael Lunt Salver by two shots at a scorching Walton Heath.
With temperatures at the Surrey heathland venue exceeding 30 degrees, Thurloway revelled in the heatwave conditions, shooting rounds of 69, 68, 69 and 73 for a nine-under-par total of 279 to capture the trophy by two strokes from Chelmsford’s Alasdair Plumb.
The 20-year-old from Crawley in West Sussex coped superbly with the hot, dry and bouncy conditions to record the biggest win of his career. A third round three-under-par 69 over the New Course had given him a two-stroke lead going into the final round over the Old Course and despite a mid-round stumble he held on to win by two shots.
“I had played terribly the week before in the Tillman Trophy, and my head was all over the place, said Thurloway. “But I had a good chat with Ryan Fenwick, who coaches European Tour pro Justin Walters, and he cleared my mind.”
Plumb, a former Loughborough University student and Essex County champion, burst into contention in the third round with a best of the week 64 over the New Course, before closing with a 73 over the Old to finish on 281.
There was a three-way tie for third on 283 involving Ryan Brooks of Whittington Heath, Harry Goddard (Hanbury Manor) and Tom Sloman (Taunton & Pickeridge).
Thurloway is due to head out to Jacksonville University in Florida in the next few weeks after switching colleges. He spent his freshman year at the University of Toledo, but decided to switch to Florida in search of better weather and stronger competition. “The weather in Ohio isn’t great,” admitted Thurloway. “In addition, there was also the fact that Toledo is ranked about 100th in US college golf, while Jacksonville is around 50th. David Wicks (a past Arnold Palmer Cup team member and friend) advised me to switch.”