Keene, NH – Former NH Open champion David Pastore surged to the top of the leaderboard with a bogey-free 7-under-par 65 to lead after the opening round of the 2025 New Hampshire Open Championship presented by NBT Bank. Playing the North Course at Bretwood Golf Course, Pastore used a chip-in eagle on the par-5 2nd and a hot putter to navigate gusty afternoon conditions and secure the solo lead heading into Round 2.
“I played pretty solid,” said Pastore, the 2017 NH Open winner. “Yesterday it seemed like the course would be a birdie fest, but it was a pretty good test with the wind. I had two pretty good par saves on my front nine which kind of kept me going, and I had a chip-in eagle on No. 2 which jump-started the round. Overall, I’m pretty happy with how I played.”
Close behind Pastore at 6-under 66 is a talented trio that includes DJ Griffiths (Binghamton, NY), James Imai (Davenport, FL), and defending champion Jason Thresher (West Suffield, CT), all of whom turned in bogey-free rounds. Griffiths, who had one of the earliest rounds of the day, credited his short game for setting the tone.
“Right from the start, I was rolling the putter pretty good,” said Griffiths. “On my 11th hole, I chipped in so that started my momentum. My putting has felt really good lately and my driver has as well, so those two are pretty useful out there.”
“I’m looking forward to going out there, having fun and just working on the process”, continued Griffiths when asked about his gameplan for Round 2. He will look to keep up the strong pace and fend off strong competitors that sit alongside him on the leaderboard.
Thresher, a two-time NH Open champion (2018, 2024), continued to showcase his comfort at in this championship, carding five birdies and avoiding trouble off the tee.
“I knew some low scores were out there and I also knew we played in a little more wind this afternoon so it would be tough to get to six-under-par,” said Thresher. “I was never in trouble off the tee and was just hitting everything solid. I made a few putts on the back nine. It took me nine holes to get used to the greens and then everything started going in.”
Two shots back at 5-under 67 is amateur Cameron Salo (New Ipswich, NH), who impressed in his opening round with his first bogey-free ever. He is tied with Tyler Collet (Vero Beach, FL) who also sits two shots back of leader, Pastore.
A group of seven players posted 4-under 68s, including New Hampshire amateurs Wyatt Burbank (Peterborough), Bryce Zimmerman (Nashua), and Pat Pelletier (Lebanon), along with Rich Berberian (Hooksett), Nick Pandelena (Atkinson), Harrison Shih (Jacksonville, FL), and Chris Fosdick (Middlefield, CT).
Round 2 begins Friday morning as players compete to make the cut and position themselves for Saturday’s final round on the North Course at Bretwood.
Pairings & Tee Times | Round 2
NH Open | Leaderboard
