Rob Henley fell just a couple shots short last year. This year, he finished the job.
Henley didn’t play his cleanest round, but he made key shots when he needed to and captured the 121st New Hampshire State Amateur Championship on Saturday at Concord Country Club.
Henley, 36, a New London resident and Lake Sunapee Country Club member birdied on the 17th hole, the 35th hole contested in the match, to defeat Stephen Goodridge, 38, a Grantham resident and Eastman Golf Links member, 2 and 1, in Saturday’s 36-hole match-play final.
Henley lost the 2023 final at Manchester Country Club to Jack Pepin in a match-play final that needed 37 holes to determine the victor. This year’s final round looked like it was heading there again, with both competitors having a chance to win deep into the match.
Goodridge had an early — but short-lived — lead, when Henley bogeyed the first hole and Goodridge had a birdie on the third, allowing Goodridge to go 2 up. Goodridge was 1 up through six holes before Henley went on a stretch of six wins on the next 11, leading by as much as 5 up and holding a four-hole advantage through the opening 18 holes.
But Goodridge closed the gap in the second round, getting two birdies while Henley had four bogeys and three double bogeys over the next 13 holes, setting up a tied match with just four holes to play.
Both competitors had pars on the 14th and 15th holes before Henley took advantage of Goodridge’s two bogeys on the 16th and 17th holes to win his first state am title.
Henley made an especially tough shot on the 15th hole to break his tough stretch.
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“It was the only long putt I made today, so it was definitely the best (shot of) today,” Henley said in an interview with NHGA. “That kind of changed the momentum a bit and brought things back around. I was basically making nothing and hitting bad shots, so I needed a little spark there.”
While Henley shot 5 over par in Saturday’s 36-hole final (3 under on the first 18, 8 over on the second), it capped an impressive week of golf for the New London resident. He shot an even-par 70 in both rounds of stroke-play qualifying on Monday and Tuesday to earn the No. 6 seed in the match-play bracket.
He defeated No. 59 Bill Raney (Laconia CC), 1 up; No. 27 Nate Stevens (Candia Oaks), 3 and 1; and No. 22 Derek Dinwoodie (Farmington CC), 7 and 5, in Wednesday and Thursday’s rounds.
Possibly his most impressive and toughest feat of the week was topping two-time champion James Pleat (Nashua CC) in Friday morning’s quarterfinal in 20 holes. The former Dartmouth College golfer had been solid all week, shooting 2-under 138 (65-73) in qualifying and ending the career of Hall of Fame legend Bob Mielcarz (Concord CC) in the round of 64. Pleat shot slightly better than Henley in that match (2 over compared to 3 over, with both golfers winning six holes), before Henley clinched the victory on the 20th hole.
Henley defeated No. 17 Josiah Hakala (NHGA e-Club), a star NHIAA golfer for Mascenic High, 2 and 1, to reach the final for the second straight year.
“Last year I had a great tournament; disappointing at the end, but it was a good week,” Henley said. “To get back this year was good.”
This year, the U.S. Golf Association is allowing the N.H. State Amateur champion direct entry into the U.S. Amateur for the first time. Henley has an opportunity to play in the national championship at Hazeltine National Golf Club in Chaska, Minn., on Aug. 12-18.
Goodridge, a first-time finalist, also had an impressive week, carding 72-73 for a combined 5-over 145 performance in qualifying to earn the No. 21 seed. He defeated No. 44 Kory Ferullo (Rochester CC), 3 and 2; No. 53 Elliot Wallace (Manchester CC), 2 and 1; No. 37 Jascha Johnston (Exeter CC), 1 up; and No. 20 Ryan Zetterholm (Pease Golf Club) in 19 holes to reach the final four.
Goodridge beat No. 8 Austin Fox (Derryfield CC, former Southern New Hampshire University All-Northeast 10 selection) in 19 holes in the semifinals to reach the final.
The NHGA also acknowledged the fantastic job done by Concord Country Club and its staff in hosting the tournament. In addition to keep everyone hydrated in the extreme heat and keeping the tournament moving along with nine rounds to play in six days, its members also stood out in the grueling competition. Eighteen members qualified for the 156-man field, with 10 of them reaching match play and seven of them reaching the fourth day of the tournament.
“The other star of the show this week was Concord Country Club,” Kate Billings, director of communication, said. “The golf course was in pristine condition and provided a true test for the best amateur golfers in the state. The New Hampshire Golf Association would like to extend a sincere thank you to the entire staff at Concord Country Club for the work they have done all week for this championship.”