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Rye Beach, NH – Eight golfers successfully worked their way through two rounds of match play on Day Four of the 119th New Hampshire Amateur Championship presented by Smuttynose Brewing Company. The day was filled with redemption, come-from-behind victories, and all-around great golf as the Round of 32 and Round of 16 came to a close.

Among the eight golfers moving forward is 2011 New Hampshire Amateur Champion, Jim Cilley (Laconia CC) who brought his Round of 32 match against Jon Dyer (Nashua CC) to an early end as he defeated him 5&4. His Round of 16 match against Will Ducharme was not going to be an easy one, seeing as how Ducharme was fresh off a win where he knocked out the top seed of the tournament, Rob Henley.

Ducharme took Henley to 19 holes, winning the match to take down the top seed and clear a path for either himself or other golfers as it was clear Henley had been playing great golf at Abenaqui. In the Round of 16, Ducharme got himself to 4up in the match against Cilley, but it slowly started to slip away. Cilley clawed his way back into the match and coming down 18, the match was tied. Unfortunately for Ducharme, he put his second shot into the penalty area and Cilley took advantage of his mistake, winning the hole and winning the match to advance.

Cilley has been here before, he even advanced to the Semifinal round last year but lost to James Pleat. Reflecting on how it feels to move on once again, Cilley stated, “It doesn’t get any easier. After 81 the first day, I didn’t think I would be here but I kind of figured it out. I’m finally starting to figure out the greens, you have to be defensive a lot.”

Finding the right pace and line is important on the Abenaqui greens, which have been a big talk of the tournament thus far. One player who very clearly figured out the greens was Brandon Gillis who had to face two former champions in his matches but emerged victorious in both. His marquee match of the day was against James Pleat (Nashua CC), it was a rematch of last year’s State Amateur final match where Gillis finished runner-up. That was certainly in the back of his head as they started out the match.

“Before we started, he said, ‘it’s a shame we have to play each other so early’ and I totally agreed”, commented Gillis after the round. “When we play together, it brings out the best in each other.”

Pleat and Gillis are certainly two of the top competitors in the tournament and birdies are almost always guaranteed when they get out there. It was back and forth for much of the round, but Gillis turned on the jets as they came down the last three holes. He rolled in a birdie putt on the 14th hole to take the 1up lead in the match and stuck his second shot on the 15th hole to a foot and won the hole again as Pleat missed his birdie opportunity. On the 16th hole, Gillis watched as Pleat missed another birdie opportunity and rolled in his birdie to win the match 3&2.

“It feels really good”, stated Gillis. “I’m playing my best golf right now that I can remember playing.”

Gillis moves on to the Quarterfinals with his brother caddying for him. He said, “It’s kind of a tradition for us every year. He keeps me levelheaded out there when I get frustrated”.

In the Quarterfinal match, Gillis will face Mat Gover (Atkinson Resort & CC) who had an easier Round of 32 match than his Round of 16 match. His match against Craig Steckowych in the Round of 16 took all 18 holes plus an additional one for Gover to close it out to advance on. He has been this far in the State Amateur before, so he knows how it feels.

“It feels amazing”, stated Gover with a big grin on his face. “I have been here once, and you just have to ride of the wave of momentum.”

Joe Bowker (Pembroke Pines CC) and Brett Wilson (Golf Club of New England) are cruising into the Quarterfinals and neither golfer saw the last four holes at Abenaqui in either of their matches as they were able to close it out early on. The two will face each other in the next round and duke it out for a Semifinal spot in the tournament.

Mark Stevens (Beaver Meadow GC) had an easy time with his Round of 32 match against Tony Fournier (Portsmouth CC), winning the match 7&6. He sat around for awhile to eventually find out he was going to face Jamie Ferullo (Rochester CC) in the Round of 16. Stevens had a grasp of the lead for most of the match, but Ferullo found a way to take the match to the 18th hole where Ferullo needed to win it to go to extra holes. Ferullo chipped in for birdie, forcing Stevens to need to make his putt. With all the pressure on him, he successfully rolled in his birdie putt to win it 1up.

Second seed, Ryan Kohler (Hooper GC) presses on in the tournament as he also finds himself headed to the Quarterfinals. He defeated Michael Fiacco (Golf Club of New England) and Harvin Groft (The Oaks GL) on his way to Day Five of the championship. He will face Evan Desjardins (Atkinson Resort & CC) who also had a successful day on the course, defeating Cam Salo (The Shattuck) and Derek Dinwoodie (Farmington CC).

The Quarterfinal round will begin on Friday, July 15th at 7AM.

NH Amateur | Match Play Bracket