Hertfordshire on course to bury Belfry nightmare

Hertfordshire are back in the finals of the PGA England & Wales Inter-County Championship Final at The Belfry thanks to an impressive win in a regional qualifier at Bush Hill Park, Middlesex.

A six-under-par return of 134 in the three-man team event, in which the best two scores count, created a three-stroke winning margin over Bedfordshire and Cambridgeshire and the rest of the six-strong field.

Now the trio is determined to go one better after finishing second last year.

Wobbles on the last two holes at The Belfry in 2015 meant they had to watch in frustration as Berkshire, Buckinghamshire and Oxfordshire (BB&O) claimed victory by a single stroke.

But Glen Portelli (pictured), who fired a six-under-par round at Bush Hill Park to pave the way for The Belfry return, is determined the team make up for that this year.

He said: “It was so frustrating last year, we came so close. It’s a fantastic event, we really enjoyed playing there.

“It would be great this time out if we could win.”

In 2015, Verulam professional Portelli, James Ruebotham of Welwyn Garden City and Potters Bar’s James Jankowski were the Hertfordshire trio, qualifying with a nine-under-par total.

This term, East Herts pro Daniel Field took Jankowski’s place but the pressure was on Portelli and Ruebotham early on.

Portelli said: “I saw Daniel’s ball head for the rubbish on the ninth ­ so I knew we had to score well if we wanted to qualify for a second time.”

Portelli’s response was a back nine 29 which, along with Ruebotham’s level par round, was enough to land a place at The Belfry.

“My game’s getting back into good shape,” admitted Portelli who has his eye on a Tour card. “I had some time out to get married to my partner Sonia.
 But I have been working hard since then and it is paying off.

“I was really pleased with the second nine score. But James came in with a fantastic level par round under pressure.”

The final will be played on the Belfry’s PGA National course over October 18 and 19.

And Field is on a mission to find a sponsor so the trio can enjoy the 36-hole event in a little more style this year.

He said: “Last year all the other players turned up in team colours and stayed at The Belfry.

“The Herts boys were sleeping in a Travelodge 20 miles down the road.

“It would be great this year if we could stay there and really enjoy the event ­ especially if we came away with the title.

“But just qualifying again for the second time in two years proves how strong golf is at the moment in Hertfordshire -  at every level and across every age range.

“And Glen and James are in great form. They played brilliantly under pressure to get us there.”

Field is also convinced that Portelli has the talent to make it on Tour.

“Glen is a fantastic player, a real talent,” he confirmed. “He has the ability to make it on Tour.”

 The 25-year-old has played a couple of Challenge Tour events and is hoping to land another East region Order of Merit title to add to the three he has already won.

Portelli is currently fifth in the standings with one event left but team mate Ruebotham is fourth.

“We will be team mates at The Belfry,” Portelli said, “but we are both desperate to win the Order of Merit.”