Senior shoots 4-under on front nine to take second at the Tournament of Champions.
By: Tim Falls
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Ben Bershad won the NJSIAA Group II Championship and nearly won the Tournament of Champions with a 1-under par 70 at the Rumson Country Club on Monday.
Bershad won the NJSIAA Group II Central-South sectional with a 71 Monday, May 15.
The Hopewell Valley Central High School varsity golf team took second place in both Group II events. The Bulldogs finished seventh overall at the Tournament of Champions.
"It was an unbelievable 70," said Hopewell Valley golf coach Bill Russell. "Ben went 33 on the first nine and was four under at the turn."
A 33 would have been almost as good on the back nine but it would not have been quite as impressive as it was on the front.
"The way the course is set up, par is 37-34," said Russell. "The front nine has two par 5’s and one par 3, while the back nine has two par 3’s and one par 5."
Bershad did better on the tougher nine, shooting 4-under par with the help of two birdies and an eagle in the first four holes.
Bershad began his round with consecutive birdies.
The Hopewell senior, who will attend Guilford College in Greensboro, N.C. after graduation, sank his third shot on the 400-yard par 4 opening hole, and then drained a putt to birdie the 550-yard par 5 second hole.
Bershad did even better on the next par 5.
After a par on the third hole, Bershad eagled the 513-yard par 5 and then cruised through the next five holes shooting par for the remainder of the front nine.
"Ben said he killed his drive on the fourth hole," said Russell. "He put his second shot on the green and made a good putt."
Russell said the putting was crucial on a course with very tough greens.
"Ben was sticking stuff close," said Russell. "His putting was on, his whole game was on."
Only one golfer had a better round.
Ramapo sophomore Morgan Hoffmann defended the title he won as a freshman by shooting a 69 on the 6,332-yard course.
Hoffmann shot par on the front nine with a 37 and finished 2-under on the back nine with 32 to finished 2-under in the tournament and edge the Hopewell Valley senior by a stroke.
"Ben was so close to winning the whole thing," said Russell.
The tournament is the combination of two championships. The top two teams from each NJSIAA sectional compete for group championships and the entire field competes for the Tournament of Champions title.
While Bershad won the Group II Championship and placed second overall, Hopewell Valley finished second in the Group II Tournament and finished seventh overall in team scoring.
Haddonfield won the Group II Championship after edging the Bulldogs in the Group II Central-South sectional.
"Haddonfield snaked us by two strokes at the sectional," said Russell, "and got us by four in the championship."
Hopewell Valley shot a 324 with Alex Laughlin carding an 80, Steve Marsh recording an 86 and Areeb Zamir finishing with an 88. Haddonfield won Group II with a 320.
"A couple of shots here and there and we could have won states," said Russell. "That’s golf, a couple of shots here and there make all the difference."
The winning scores shocked and impressed Russell. The Hopewell Valley coach could not imagine golfers shooting under par on such a challenging course.
"It was a tough course," said Russell. "It was a beautiful course with average length. The greens were extremely challenging. If you had a 10 foot put you had hills to go over. You’d think even par would have won it."
After shooting 4-under on the first four holes and not giving up any strokes for the rest of the front nine, Bershad shot one-under on the back nine with two double bogies.
"In the end, the two double bogies killed him," said Russell. "They were the only blemish of his round."
If not for those two blunders Hopewell Valley would have a Tournament of Champion medallist.
"He was a little disappointed," said Russell of Ben finishing runner-up to Hoffmann. "Any time you can shoot 4-under par on a nine, that’s awesome."
Bershad’s 70 topped every other Colonial Valley Conference golfer in the tournament and more than made up for the Hopewell Valley senior’s fifth-place finish at the Mercer County Championship.
West Windsor-Plainsboro South took sixth overall and edged the Bulldogs by two strokes with a 322, while Princeton took ninth with a 330.
"Princeton snaked us twice this season," said Russell. "It was nice to finish over them. It was a moral victory."

