Carson McDaniel is on fire. The sophomore golfer has won three straight high school tournaments. On September 2, he tied for first place at the Ronan Invitational with a 77. On September 8, he shot a 75 to win the Polson Invitational. Last Thursday, he won his third in Columbia Falls, shooting a 78, helping push his team to a first place finish. On Monday, he won a fourth tournament on the old nine of the Polson Bay golf course, although that wasn’t an official competition. “One of my coaches came in second, so that was kind of interesting,” he said.

McDaniel has been playing golf since he could walk. “My parents pretty much put a club in my hands when I was like two,” he said, “It just kind of stuck, so I’ve been playing in tournaments all my life.”

He even played in a World Championship for little kids in North Carolina when he was six. “I was way too nervous as a little kid. I kind of cracked,” he said of the experience.

Polson’s golf coach, Bill Owen, said McDaniel has put in a lot of work to get where he is today. “This game is about investment. When he was younger I would see him out here almost every day. He’s working a lot on discipline. This game takes a lot of discipline. It’s his investment, he’s worked hard and he’s getting his reward.”

McDaniel said his dad taught him how to golf, and he hasn’t had a ton of professional lessons, other than from the guys at the Polson golf course. “My dad taught me to play the game and I guess if it stuck it stuck and if it didn’t then we would just go from there.”

It obviously did stick. McDaniel said he plays almost every day. “I try to play 18 holes everyday in the summer. I try to go as much as I can during the winter but it’s kind of hard.”

He said part of the reason he sticks with it is because he can always get better. “It’s the strive for perfection. You could shoot 10 under par and still think ‘Oh I could have done that better.’ That’s why I like this game.”

Coach Owen said his personality helps him be such a good golfer. “He’s really low key. I think that’s one of the things that make him good. This game isn’t one of those games where you get all hyped up. A milder manner helps a lot of the time. He seems to stay real cool and calm when he plays.”

McDaniel said his mindset is something he has been working on. “I haven’t won many tournaments in the last few years,” he said, “tournaments have eluded me. My mental aspect has been miserable.” He added that as he gets older, it has gotten better. “I’ve been playing good and working on the mental aspect. In the Polson tournament I was up, I felt shaky because I knew I was doing really well. I didn’t want to mess up.”

He said repetition and experience help his mental toughness. “That’s a big part of this game.”

McDaniel is the only returning state placer for the Polson golf team. Last year, he tied for eighth place as a freshman. Coach Owen said he has high hopes for him this year. “I would say he has a pretty good chance of moving up this year. He’s playing better golf in tournaments this year. That 75 in Polson was pretty impressive.”

The sophomore’s love for golf extends beyond the course. Right now, he is doing a project for a school class involving golf. “I’ve been taking video of my swing to see what I can do better,” he said.

At this point, it doesn’t seem like there is much for McDaniel to do to get better.

Polson’s next tournament is on Thursday and Friday in Kalispell, where they will be competing against AA teams. 

Polson golf results

Polson Invitational

Boys- Polson team (First place)

Carson McDaniel 75 (1^st)

Matt Hobbs 86

Curtis Capdeville 86

Colin Kenny 89

Noah McDonald 103

Girls-

Emily Davis115

Amanda Farley 129

Kiyara McCue 98

Columbia Falls

Boys- Polson team (First place)

Carson McDaniel 78 (1^st)

Curtis Capdeville 90 (4^th)

Matt Hobbs 92 (5^th)

Noah McDonald 99

Colin Kenny 100

Girls

Kiyara McCue 114 (4^th)

Emily Davis 116