Author: Zim

Kirk Hanefeld was a stand-out junior golfer in New Hampshire. He won the New Hampshire Junior Championship and the Red Ryan CYO tournament in 1971, 1972 and 1973. From there he then went on to win the New Hampshire Amateur Championship in 1974 and 1976 and won the New England Amateur Championship in 1977.
During his years of winning on the amateur side of golf, he also competed for the University of Houston golf team from 1974-1977.
Once turning professional, he won five State Opens, including the New Hampshire Open (1982), the Rhode Island Open (1998 and 2005), and the Maine Open (2003 and 2005). He participated in three PGA Tour majors (one U.S. Open and two PGA Championships) and 26 PGA Champions Tour majors (10 Senior PGA Championships, 3 U.S. Senior Opens, 6 Senior British Opens, 6 Senior Players Championships, and 1 Tradition).
Hanefeld has made 71 starts on the PGA Champions Tour since joining in 2006. Among the awards he has won, he has been named the New England PGA Player of the Year two times and the National PGA Senior Player of the Year one time.
Outside of playing he was the Director of Golf and Head Golf Professional at Salem Country Club from 1985 to 1999. He was the Director of Operations at The Ridge Club from 1999 to 2000, the Director of Golf at the International Golf Club from 2000 to 2006 and currently is the Director of Instruction at Salem Country Club in Massachusetts.
The NHGA Junior Player of the Year award is named after Kirk for his numerous accomplishments in the Granite State.
 

Jesse Guilford set the bar for New Hampshire golfers in the early years of the New Hampshire Golf Association. He competed in and won the New Hampshire Amateur Championship in 1913, 1916, and 1917. He also won the Massachusetts Amateur Championship in 1916, 1921, and 1924.
One of his greatest accomplishments was defeating Robert Gardner 7 & 6 at St. Louis Country Club to win the 1921 U.S. Amateur Championship. The following year, he earned medalist honors in the U.S. Amateur that was held at The Country Club.
Guilford went on to play on three of the first four Walker Cup teams (1922, 1924, and 1926). The U.S. won all three times he was a part of the team.
Following his amateur playing years, Guilford turned professional and won two more tournaments as a professional. Nicknamed “Siege Gun” for his long driving capabilities, Guilford was one of the founding members of Intervale Country Club. Those who play at Intervale see a monument on the course that was dedicated to him in 1993.
 

The Friel name is very well-known in the Granite State when it comes to golf and Phil Friel started it all. As a professional golfer, he has many accomplishments, including winning the New Hampshire Open and Maine Open in 1954. He went on to win the New England PGA Championship in 1957 and was named the New England PGA Professional of the Year in 1971. He also competed in seven PGA Championships over the years. For his numerous accomplishments, he was inducted into the New England PGA Hall of Fame in 1996 as a member of the first class of inductees.
Friel was a golf professional at Woburn CC (MA), Bellevue CC (MA) and Nashua CC (NH). While head professional at Nashua CC, he designed and built his first golf course, Green Meadow Golf Club which now has 36 holes and is one of the most successful golf courses in the state. He ended up owning and operating ten golf courses across New Hampshire, Massachusetts, and Maine.

Robert ‘Doc’ Elliott served as the Secretary-Treasurer of the New Hampshire Golf Association for 35 years beginning in 1963. During his tenure, ‘Doc’ Elliott expanded the New Hampshire Amateur Championship to include 36 holes of qualifying before seeding the 64-player match play bracket. Elliott also created the New Hampshire Senior Championship in 1972, the New Hampshire Mid-Amateur Championship in 1984, and the New Hampshire Father-Son Championship in 1990 (known today as the New Hampshire Parent-Child Championship). Today, the Robert H. Elliott New Hampshire Mid-Amateur Championship is named in his honor.
‘Doc’ Elliott was most known for being the leading authority on all things golf in New Hampshire. He was widely respected for his extensive knowledge of the rules of golf and was consulted regionally and nationally for questions on the topic. He took a “tough but fair” approach to officiating New Hampshire’s golf championships and because of that, he earned the nickname “God” amongst players. Many will tell you that when ‘Doc’ made a ruling, it was final.
Robert ‘Doc’ Elliott was a longtime member at Manchester Country Club where his family still belongs today.
 

Beginning her golf career at age 11 out of Nashua Country Club, Pat Bradley has found much success from an amateur and professional standpoint. She won the New Hampshire Women’s Amateur Championship in 1967 and 1969 and went on to win the New England Women’s Amateur Championship in 1972 and 1973. She was a vital member of the Florida International University Golf Team and became an All-American in 1970.
From there, she joined the professional ranks of the LPGA in 1974 and won 31 LPGA Tour events, including six major championships, the Peter Jackson Classic in 1980, the U.S. Women’s Open in 1981, the du Maurier Classic in 1985 and 1986, the Kraft Nabisco Championship in 1986 and the LPGA Championship in 1986. Bradley has been a part of four Solheim Cup teams – 1990, 1992, 1996 and 2000 as a captain. The U.S. team won it in 1990 and 1996.
Her accomplishments extend to being named the LPGA Player of the Year in 1986 and 1991. She is the only player to have won three of the four modern-day majors in one season, 1986 and she her win at the LPGA Championship in 1986 made her the third player to complete the LPGA Career Grand Slam.
Bradley was ultimately inducted in to the World Golf Hall of Fame in 1991. Regardless of the time of day, her mother would ring a bell off the family’s back porch following each win Pat had. That bell was donated to the World Golf Hall of Fame.
 

 

A native of Portsmouth, Blalock’s success as an amateur began is 1965 when she won the New Hampshire Women’s Golf Association Amateur Championship. She won that championship again in 1966 and 1968, with fellow inductee Pat Bradley winning in 1967. Blalock also earned success regionally as she claimed the New England Women’s Amateur Championship title in 1968 and was a vital member of the Rollins College golf team, winning the Florida Intercollegiate Championship in that same year.
With a successful amateur career behind her, she turned professional in and joined the LPGA Tour in 1969 and worked her way to earning the Rookie of the Year award. She then went on to win 27 LPGA Tour titles and played in 299 consecutive tournaments without missing a cut, a record unmatched on either the LPGA or PGA TOUR.
Her accomplishments extend outside of the playing arena. She was instrumental in the creation of the Legends Tour, the official senior tour of the LPGA and helped create the LPGA Golf Clinics for Women. A member of the Legends Golf Hall of Fame, she was also inducted into the New England Women’s Sports Hall of Fame in 1998 and named the New Hampshire Athlete of the Century in 2000. Her close ties to New Hampshire and her outstanding achievements make her name synonymous with the game of golf in the Granite State.
 

The entirety of Bill Barrett’s working career was focused on some aspect of the golf industry. After obtaining a degree in Turf Management from the University of Massachusetts he became Superintendent at Fresh Pond Golf Course in Cambridge, MA and was later hired to build the golf course at Nashawtuc CC in Concord, MA. When that was completed he went on to become the first Superintendent at Portsmouth Country Club in Greenland, NH.
Realizing the need to establish a professional code of standards he, along with Bob Flanagan, formed the New Hampshire Golf Course Superintendents Association (NHGCSA). Believing in the vital nature of the Superintendent’s job, he helped to establish the scholarship program for continuing education in the field of turf management. Bill also helped to establish the New Hampshire Turf Conference and presented at it for many years.
Bill ended his career in sales often acting as a consultant for his clients. He was uncompromising when it came to honesty and treating people with dignity. In return, he was respected and loved by all aspects of the turf industry throughout New England.