Pelletier Powers Through to Capture His Fifth Stroke Play Title
Keene, NH – A birdie-birdie-birdie start to your final round will certainly set you up for success at the end of the day. That is exactly how Pat Pelletier started to separate himself from a crowded and talented pack at the top of the leaderboard. He avoided the bogeys, made important up and downs and rolled in a total of six birdie putts on the way to capturing his fifth New Hampshire Stroke Play Championship title of his career. He carded a 66 (-6) in the final round on Bretwood’s South Course to ultimately win by four strokes, after beginning the day one shot back of the leaders.
All week long Pelletier has been lurking around the top of the leaderboard but was never able to get a hold of the lead, until the final round. He said, “I feel like my game has been coming into shape this year and I was in position coming into today which is all I can ask for.”
He started the final round one shot back of the co-leaders, Andrew Surprenant and Jeremy Burke. Expecting both players, along with others near the top, to shoot some low rounds, Pelletier knew he needed to bring his best game if he wanted to get another win under his belt. He started strong making three consecutive birdies to set the tone for the day.
“I made a couple of good up and downs which settled me in nicely, I started off birdie-birdie”, stated Pelletier. “I knew to put pressure on those guys, you had to get off to a good start.”
While others were finding some birdies out there, they were also running into some bogey and double trouble which set them back against a bogey-free Pelletier. By the time the field made the turn, Pelletier held a three-stroke lead as he went four-under par on the front nine alone. With the more challenging nine holes ahead of them, Pelletier knew he needed to hang on and continue to do what he was doing.
The stretch of holes through the course’s ‘Jurassic Park’ got the best of many of them, but Pelletier held strong. Despite putting his tee shot in the water on the par-4th, 15th hole where the tees were moved up to drivable distance, he made a fantastic up and down to save par. He made another par save on the 17th hole after an uncharacteristic approach shot that left him in the greenside bunker. Making par down the stretch was key to his success.
This win makes this five Stroke Play Championship titles for Pelletier; he last won the tournament in 2020 at Montcalm Golf Club. He stated, “It feels good. It feels like it’s been a little while since I won, so closing out, I was a little tentative down the stretch but I found a way to make pars. Number five is nice.”
Pelletier was able to fend off some strong competitors all day including Jeremy Burke, Andrew Surprenant and Damon Salo. Burke ended up finishing runner-up to Pelletier with another under-par round of 71 (-1) but fell short of Pelletier as he had a couple hiccups on the front nine. Despite two trouble holes, Burke had a strong back nine with one birdie and eight pars to remain steady and consistent.
Damon Salo also shot a one-under par round of 71 but finished five shots back of Pelletier as he also had some trouble holes on the front nine, despite his birdie-birdie start to the round, similar to Pelletier. Surprenant’s final round was up and down as he made an impressive seven birdies throughout the day, but unfortunately, he carded three double bogeys to hinder his ability to climb to the top of the leaderboard. While it was not the outcome he was hoping for, he played a strong three days of golf at Bretwood.
The New Hampshire Golf Association would like to thank the entire staff at Bretwood Golf Course for hosting this three-day championship. The course was challenging, fair, and in great condition despite the amount of rain over the last week.
NH Stroke Play Championship | Results
All week long Pelletier has been lurking around the top of the leaderboard but was never able to get a hold of the lead, until the final round. He said, “I feel like my game has been coming into shape this year and I was in position coming into today which is all I can ask for.”
He started the final round one shot back of the co-leaders, Andrew Surprenant and Jeremy Burke. Expecting both players, along with others near the top, to shoot some low rounds, Pelletier knew he needed to bring his best game if he wanted to get another win under his belt. He started strong making three consecutive birdies to set the tone for the day.
“I made a couple of good up and downs which settled me in nicely, I started off birdie-birdie”, stated Pelletier. “I knew to put pressure on those guys, you had to get off to a good start.”
While others were finding some birdies out there, they were also running into some bogey and double trouble which set them back against a bogey-free Pelletier. By the time the field made the turn, Pelletier held a three-stroke lead as he went four-under par on the front nine alone. With the more challenging nine holes ahead of them, Pelletier knew he needed to hang on and continue to do what he was doing.
The stretch of holes through the course’s ‘Jurassic Park’ got the best of many of them, but Pelletier held strong. Despite putting his tee shot in the water on the par-4th, 15th hole where the tees were moved up to drivable distance, he made a fantastic up and down to save par. He made another par save on the 17th hole after an uncharacteristic approach shot that left him in the greenside bunker. Making par down the stretch was key to his success.
This win makes this five Stroke Play Championship titles for Pelletier; he last won the tournament in 2020 at Montcalm Golf Club. He stated, “It feels good. It feels like it’s been a little while since I won, so closing out, I was a little tentative down the stretch but I found a way to make pars. Number five is nice.”
Pelletier was able to fend off some strong competitors all day including Jeremy Burke, Andrew Surprenant and Damon Salo. Burke ended up finishing runner-up to Pelletier with another under-par round of 71 (-1) but fell short of Pelletier as he had a couple hiccups on the front nine. Despite two trouble holes, Burke had a strong back nine with one birdie and eight pars to remain steady and consistent.
Damon Salo also shot a one-under par round of 71 but finished five shots back of Pelletier as he also had some trouble holes on the front nine, despite his birdie-birdie start to the round, similar to Pelletier. Surprenant’s final round was up and down as he made an impressive seven birdies throughout the day, but unfortunately, he carded three double bogeys to hinder his ability to climb to the top of the leaderboard. While it was not the outcome he was hoping for, he played a strong three days of golf at Bretwood.
The New Hampshire Golf Association would like to thank the entire staff at Bretwood Golf Course for hosting this three-day championship. The course was challenging, fair, and in great condition despite the amount of rain over the last week.
NH Stroke Play Championship | Results