MORGANTOWN, W.Va. — Before embarking on a state title defense on the hardcourt this winter, Morgantown senior Brody Davis is hoping to help the Mohigans to the state’s biggest stage in high school golf. After picking up the game of golf just three years ago, Davis has become a valued member of the team that is one of the top contenders in this week’s Class AAA Region I tournament.
Many young golfers pick up the sport at the junior levels and play competitively prior to arriving at the high school level. That was not the route that Davis took entering his freshman year at MHS.
“Coach Nate Tallman, he was my freshman basketball coach. At the time, he was the varsity golf coach. He said that I am a pretty good athlete and that I would pick it up pretty quick,” Davis said.
“I didn’t really want to play because I had never touched a club in my life and I was like, ‘There’s no way I am going to be good at it. People have been playing their whole lives’.”
Davis gave golf his best shot, playing his first round days before the Mohigans opened preseason practice in 2019. He played with family members at Paradise Lake Golf Course outside Morgantown.
“My first-ever round on nine holes I shot a 65. I was not very good. On the first hole, I was about 40 feet away on the green and I actually chunked the putt and hit the ground before the ball. And I actually made the shot. Like everyone says, it is always one shot that brings you back.”
Davis made steady improvements over the next three years. At the junior varsity level, he shot in the low 50’s and high 40’s for a typical 9-hole round. He has been a mainstay in the varsity lineup this year and shot a 36 in a 9-hole match at Pines Country Club in August.
Another win for MHS golf tonight! ⛳️ #mhsgolf pic.twitter.com/RY6mEE6rji
— Morgantown High Golf (@MorgantownGolf) September 14, 2022
“Last year, Coach [Joel] Barrett did a really good job of putting me in high pressure situations. Getting into this year, whenever I am over a two-foot putt, unlike last year I am a lot more confident this year making those kinds of putts,” Davis said.
“In golf, it is such an individual sport. You can’t blame your other teammates. They are not hitting the shot that you hit. Being on the golf course is such a different feeling. It is a lot more pressure.”
The Class AAA Region I tournament will be contested at Stonewall Resort on Monday. The top two teams advance to the WVSSAC State Tournament in Wheeling.
Davis averaged nine points per game as a junior in the 2021-2022 season. Shortly after the golf season ends, Davis and his teammates will hit the court, looking to complete the school’s first-ever title defense.
“It was such a surreal feeling, honestly. To win it with that group of guys and the chemistry we had and the friendships that I built over the two-year span I played with those guys, I can’t even describe how it felt.
“In my opinion, we are going to have a very good team. I feel we are going to be larger than most teams. I feel that we are going to be able to rebound the ball, get out on fast breaks and get a lot of easy fast break points. In my opinion, we are going to have a really good shot at this thing.”