Flynn Lewis isn’t the first member of his family to compete at Augusta National.
A participant in the Boys 10-11 division of the Drive, Chip and Putt National Finals, Lewis has a relative who was a regular presence in the Masters Tournament during the 1980s, a period in which he was one of America’s finest amateur golfers.
Flynn’s paternal grandfather, Bob Lewis Jr., played in the Masters seven times and earned Low Amateur honors in 1987, his next-to-last appearance. Lewis is also in the Masters record book for making five consecutive birdies during the second round of the 1984 Tournament, the longest string by an amateur in Masters history.
Lewis’ hot hand started on the par-3 sixth hole, where he sank a downhill 80-footer that curled sharply to the left. That unlikely deuce was followed by two-footers on Nos. 7 and 8 and then putts of 15 and 25 feet on the ninth and 10th holes. “And he told me he lipped out for birdie on the 11th,” said Flynn’s father, Tristan.
It was the kind of skill that Flynn would love to channel Sunday morning in the National Finals. In fact, he advanced to Augusta National for the first time through a playoff in the Great Lakes regional qualifier at Scioto Country Club in his native state of Ohio by getting his 15-foot putt closer to the cup than playoff opponent Abram Baldridge.
A fifth-grader at Beacon Cove Intermediate School in Jupiter, Fla., Lewis, who turns 11 years old on Tuesday, has been playing golf since he was 3. Along with Flynn’s father, Bob was an early golf mentor before passing away from cancer in 2021 at age 76, and he had a lifetime of knowledge and experiences to pass along to his grandchildren — Flynn and his older siblings, Clint, 13, and Emma, 15.
(My grandfather) used to give us a lot of golf tips and tricks. I’m so excited and grateful to be here for the Drive, Chip and Putt. But it’s way more special because he has been here playing in the Masters. He used to talk about the course and tell us about the holes.
“He used to give us a lot of golf tips and tricks,” Flynn said of his grandfather. “I’m so excited and grateful to be here for the Drive, Chip and Putt. But it’s way more special because he has been here playing in the Masters. He used to talk about the course and tell us about the holes.”
Tristan and his sister, Tiffany, didn’t get to make the trip when the Masters rolled around, but he has vivid memories of how his father prepared in wintertime in northeast Ohio for the trip south in the spring. “We lived on the seventh hole of Trumbull Country Club,” Tristan said. “He would clear away some snow so he could hit iron shots. He was dedicated to preparing the best he could.”
After going to Rollins College in the late 1960s, Bob Lewis turned professional and played in 47 PGA Tour events from 1971-74 before deciding to forego tour life and join his father’s steel tubing manufacturing company. Lewis regained his amateur status in 1978, that summer becoming the first amateur since Jack Nicklaus in 1957 to win the Ohio Open.
The Ohioan played in 31 USGA championships, his résumé highlighted by a runner-up finishes in the 1980 U.S. Amateur and in the U.S. Mid-Amateur in 1981 and 1984. He compiled a 10-4 record over four appearances on the winning United States Walker Cup team (1981-83-85-87) then captained the Americans in 2003 and 2005, with a victory over Great Britain & Ireland in his latter role at the helm.
“He was an absolutely fierce competitor, just so focused and determined,” Tristan said. “He was a hard worker, but at the same time very humble.”
Lewis’ sportsmanship and integrity were recognized when shortly before passing away he received the 2021 Bob Jones Award, the USGA’s highest honor, named for the nine-time USGA champion and Augusta National co-Founder. “The USGA has played such an important role in my life,” Lewis said. “Many of my fondest memories in amateur golf come from representing our country both as a player and captain of the USA Walker Cup team. Bob Jones was the ultimate amateur, and I am truly honored to be included in his company.”
Flynn’s aunt Tiffany now resides in her parents’ former home in Pepper Pike, Ohio, a Cleveland suburb. She has preserved her dad’s “golf room,” which is full of trophies and other memorabilia from Lewis’ stellar career in the sport, including a pair of crystal goblets he received for making an eagle on the 15th hole at his maiden Masters in 1981.
“Our children knew him well and know his legacy,” Tristan said. “They were lucky to have him in their lives.”
