MANCHESTER — Besides the end of the round, Julianna Megan was at ease.
The 20-year-old from Hooksett won her second New Hampshire Women’s Amateur Championship on Wednesday despite a late surge from runner-up Mady Savary.
Megan finished the three-day stroke-play tournament at Derryfield Country Club with a 12-over-par 222 (73-73-76) — one shot ahead of Savary (77-74-72), a 16-year-old from Franklin.
Megan, at age 17, won the 2022 Women’s Am after a playoff at Concord CC.
"I did not want a playoff so badly,” Megan, a Pinkerton Academy graduate, said of Wednesday’s final round. “It’s nice to just roll in the final putt and have it be done.”
The Hoodkroft CC member, who led the field after each of the tournament’s first two days, said she felt like she was playing a round of Sunday golf on Wednesday until the 18th hole.
Megan’s six-shot lead on Savary after 10 holes shrunk to two shots by the par-4, 371-yard 18th hole.
Megan’s approach shot on Hole No. 18 went into the rough to the right of the green — just in front of a bunker — on her way to a double bogey.
Savary’s approach shot set up an about-10-foot putt. The Concord CC junior member's putt for par lipped out to the right and she settled for a bogey.
“I saw Julianna was in a bit of a rough area with that bunker so I was like, ‘OK, just focus. One shot at a time,’” Savary said. “I just tried to stay grounded throughout the hole.”
The Bishop Brady High School junior said she had her best putting round of the tournament on Wednesday as she shot a 2-over 72, the round’s lowest score.
Singing Taylor Swift songs in her head to keep calm, Savary battled back from tallying three bogeys over the first five holes. Consecutive birdies on the par-4 15th and 16th holes helped put Savary in title contention.
“I was finally making some putts,” said Savary, who struggled putting in the tournament’s first two rounds. “I was just looking to stay consistent…Still super happy with how I came back because I gained a lot of strokes (Wednesday).”
Megan struggled both early and late in the final round, notching bogeys on the first, fourth, 11th and 17th holes before her double bogey on Hole No. 18.
The College of the Holy Cross junior said she got into a groove in the middle by swinging well, hitting good iron shots and talking about anything but golf with her caddy, Pinkerton golf coach Jeff Sojka. At one point, the two discussed Popeye the Sailor Man, of all things.
“I brought him because he’s great to talk to and very chill,” Megan said. “He makes me laugh … He’s a character.”
Megan and Savary played Wednesday’s round with Cochecho CC member Delaney Nadeau, who placed third with a 16-over 226 (78-72-76).
Nadeau, an 18-year-old from Lee, entered the round in second place, four shots behind Megan.
Nadeau and her younger sister, Teagan, 16, who placed 17th, helped dowse Megan in water as a Gatorade-shower style celebration of their friend’s title win.
The Nadeaus and Megan became good friends when they started playing in NH Golf junior tournaments.
“Obviously, I was trying to make moves, go do my thing,” Delaney Nadeau said, “but, at the end of the day, I could not be happier for Julianna. She is my ride or die.”
ahall@unionleader.com
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