This was James Pleat's look a year ago during a State Am semifinal loss but Friday was the general local feeling as Pleat, Brandon Gillis and Austin Fox fell short on Friday eiher in the quarters or semis. (Telegraph file photo by TOM KING)

CONCORD – For the second straight year, there will be no Nashua area locals in today’s final match of the the New Hampshire Amateur Golf Championship at Concord Country Club.

That’s because for the second straight year, Rob Henley has advanced to the finals after defeating Nashua’s James Pleat in the quarterfinals, and then he ousted Josiah Hakala in the semis.

And neither Nashua’s Brandon Gillis (Sky Meadow) nor Merrimack’s Austin Fox (Derryfield CC) will be playing today either. Gillis can blame Fox, who beat him 1 up by birdieing the 18th hole. Gillis was two-up early and one-up with three holes to play. But Fox birdied 16, 17 and 18 to win.

But he won’t be in the finals, either, as Stephen Goodridge lands in the final match for the first time after taking down Ryan Zetterholm in the quarters and then Fox in the semifinals in 19 holes. Regardless of the outcome of the 36-hole final, a new champion is set to be crowned at Concord Country Club as neither player has won a New Hampshire Amateur title.

Henley came close to winning last year at Manchester Country Club but ended up making bogey on the 37th hole of the match to lose to 2023 champion, Jack Pepin. His run this year seems to be an attempt at redemption, however he states he has not played much golf this year, so he has just been hoping for the best. In his morning match against James Pleat, it was two Dartmouth graduates vying for a semifinal spot. It was a matter of avoiding the bogeys for Henley as he only rolled in one birdie throughout the match but it ended up good enough as Pleat ran into bogey trouble. A bogey ended up being Pleat’s downfall on the second extra hole of the match, putting Henley in the semis.

Henley faced Josiah Hakala in the Semifinals, a player who has been on a hot streak for the last month. He won the National High School Championship in Texas and earned Low Amateur honors at the New Hampshire Open a few weeks ago. Hakala seemed to run out of steam early as Henley went 3up in the match after the first five holes. While Hakala battled his way back, he never was able to gain a hold of the lead from Henley. Henley was able to close out the match on Concord’s 17th hole, winning 2&1 to once again find himself in the final match.

Good news for the 36-year-old Henley, New Hampshire golfers have had good luck when they have played in the final match two years in a row. Gillis lost in the final match in 2021 at North Conway to Pleat but went on to win the next year at Abenaqui Country Club. Matt Paradis lost in the final match at Bretwood Golf Course in 2017 and went on to win in 2018 at Hanover Country Club. Possibly, this could be Henley’s year.

The one golfer in Henley’s way is Goodridge,38, who has been playing steady, consistent golf all week long. Goodridge has played through players like Kory Ferullo, Elliot Wallace, Jascha Johnston, Ryan Zetterholm and finally, Austin Fox. Goodridge has been a strong golfer and is emerging as one of the top in the state through his run in this tournament. While he hasn’t made it to the final match of the New Hampshire Amateur before, he is finding his energy in the excitement of the week. He said, “The energy of the tournament gives me energy to keep pressing forward.”

Goodridge, a graduate of the University of Rochester who has won a Division III Golf National Championship in his sophomore year, has found a lot of success at Concord Country Club. He stated, “I’m driving it really well, that’s probably the strength of my game right now. Everything else is falling into place.”

When it comes to match play, Goodridge talks about his mindset saying, “Trying not to care too much. You can easily care too much about match play because there are so many momentum shifts going on from hole to hole.”

It’s one thing to be competing in match play, it’s quite another accomplishment to make it to the final match of the New Hampshire Amateur. Goodridge’s game plan is to continue to hit the ball straight and keep his mind in it. He said, “I figured out some good thoughts on and around the greens that I can use for tomorrow and try to mentally stay even keel.”

(Telegraph staff writer Tom King contributed to this report.)