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Thornton, NH – The New Hampshire Four Ball Championship brings together the top amateur golfers in the Granite State to compete in a best ball team format to crown the best duo.  This year the team of Mark Stevens and Joe Bowker claimed the title, a first for each of them as neither have won this tournament before, let alone as a pair.  Stevens and Bowker went and fired a 64 (-8) in the first round which put them into a tie for second place before the final round.  With a 63 (-9) in the second round, they were able to pull ahead of the field to claim the title by three strokes.
 
Starting out on arguably the hardest hole on the course, the par-4 3^rd hole at Owl’s Nest, Stevens and Bowker admit to having a slow start to their day.  Stevens stated, “We were one over through three holes in the morning, so it took us a while to get out of bed and get going but we both stayed positive.”
 
Once they got that bogey out of the way, they went on to make seven birdies and one eagle on their 18 holes of the day to finish their first round with a 64 (-8).  Stevens commented, “We made a couple nice birdies and had a really strong back nine.”
 
While a 64 was great for the first round, it was not enough for first place.  They sat tied for second place with Brett Wilson and Bill Everett, among many other teams who were within a few shots of round one leaders, Ryan Kohler and Josh Chamberlain.  Kohler and Chamberlain shot a 63 (-9) in the first round to put a target on their backs with 18 holes left in the day.
 
Heading to the second round, there were a number of teams that had a chance at the win, including Stevens and Bowker, Wilson and Everett, the Salo brothers, the Ferullo brothers, and Russell Hamel and Noah Leclair.  As the round went on, Stevens and Bowker started to open things up, especially when they went birdie-eagle-birdie on 16, 17 and 18 which got them to 17-under par for the tournament.
 
Bowker commented on their goals between rounds saying, “We wanted to hit double digits, we really wanted to get to 12-under.  We had a couple putts that could have gone but we stayed positive.”
 
Stevens and Bowker ended up winning by a margin of three shots over second place team, Kohler and Chamberlain who shot 67 (-5) in their second round.  Wilson and Everett slipped down the leaderboard with a 73 (+1) second round score.  Overall, Stevens and Bowker collectively made 14 birdies and two eagles throughout the day which set them apart from the rest of the teams.
 
“We probably made three putts outside of 35 feet which if we don’t make those, we’re going to a playoff so that was the difference”, Stevens said after the round.  Their putters were truly working for them all day.
 
This is the first time Stevens and Bowker have competed as a team in a tournament and the first time each has won the New Hampshire Four Ball Championship.  It sounds like it won’t be their last time competing as a duo.  When asked how it feels to win it, Stevens said, “There’s nothing better.”
 
The NHGA would like to extend a sincere thank you to Owl’s Nest Resort for hosting this 36-hole championship and allowing the use of the golf course all day.  There were nothing but compliments by all the players on the condition of the course, it’s always a treat to host an event there.
 
NH Four Ball  |  Results