Ashland, NH – Eight-time New Hampshire Senior Champion Phil Pleat wasted no time putting himself in contention at the New Hampshire Senior Championship, carding a 1-over-par 71 Tuesday at Owl’s Nest Vineyard Course to take a one-stroke lead after the opening round of the two-day championship. Pleat, a member of Nashua Country Club, finished one stroke ahead of Portsmouth Country Club’s Peter Keilty, who carded a 2-over-par 72. Souhegan Woods Golf Club’s Eric Emeneau, the defending champion, sits in third at 3-over 73
Pleat got off to a fast start, making birdie on the par-4 second hole to quickly move to 1-under par. A bogey on the third hole brought him back to even, and another bogey on the par-3 seventh left him 1-over heading to the back nine.
After making the turn at 1-over, Pleat settled into a steady rhythm on the back nine, recording one birdie and one bogey to finish with a 71 and the first-round lead. He commented saying, “It was a slow start, a little cold and had to get the body moving. I made a good putt on 2 for birdie and came right back and three-putted 3. It was tough getting the speeds early on.”
Pleat said he found more consistency as the round progressed, relying on his ball striking and course management to keep himself near the top of the leaderboard. He said, “I just kept hitting it straight and knocking it on the greens and once I got the flow, my swing started getting better.”
Even as his swing improved, the challenging greens continued to test Pleat throughout the round.
“I thought I hit it pretty solid on the back but I still had trouble with the speeds,” stated Pleat.
Despite the early struggles, Pleat was pleased with his opening-round performance and the position it puts him in heading into Wednesday’s final round saying, “Overall I’m very happy. At my age to shoot 71 is pretty good.”
Looking ahead to the final round, Pleat plans to rely on the experience that comes with eight Senior Championship titles. He stated, “I’ll maintain and play aggressive in spots if I have to. I’ve been here before, I’ve played in a lot of tournaments, so I’m just going to take it one shot at a time.”
Peter Keilty, who sits just one shot back on Pleat on the leaderboard, put together a solid round but will look to get redemption on the closing two holes of the course. He played a similar round to Pleat on the front nine, carding two bogeys and one birdie to turn at one-over par.
Despite another bogey on the 12th hole, Keilty rolled in back-to-back birdie putts on 14 and 15 to get himself to even par. Unfortunately for Keilty, he bogeyed each of the last two holes to finish the day one shot back of the lead. The good news for him is he sits in a good position for the final 18 with Pleat in his sight.
Joining Emeneau among the leaders is another former champion, as Derryfield Country Club’s Danny Arvanitis, the 2022 New Hampshire Senior Champion, carded a 4-over-par 74 and sits tied for fourth and in a good position with 18 holes left in the competition.
Bill Everett of Laconia Country Club also posted a 74 to join Arvanitis at 4-over, while Craig Steckowych of Portsmouth Country Club and Dan Mulkern of The Golf Club of New England are tied for sixth at 5-over 75.
With three former champions, Pleat, Emeneau and Arvanitis, among the leading players after the opening round, the championship is positioned for an exciting conclusion Wednesday at Owl’s Nest Vineyard Course.
NH Senior Championship | Leaderboard
