Webb Wins 36th Annual Montana Mid-Am, Earns Hall of Fame Spot

Gordon Webb of Malta brought home the trophy for the 36th Montana State Golf Association Montana Mid-Amateur Men's Single Golf event on Saturday, August 13, in Shelby.

Webb won the trophy after posting 210 strokes (six under par) in the three day event that started on Thursday, August 11, and concluded on August 13. The event was held at Marias Valley Golf Course.

The Mid-Am is open to contestants 25 and older, while the State-Am, which he won after graduating from Malta High School around 2008 is open to contestants of all ages. Webb also won the Couples trophy in 2021 with his wife Kate Webb. With this last win, Webb earned a spot in the Montana State Golf Association Hall of Fame, although he will not be formally inducted until sometime next year.

There were close to 80 golfers at the Mid-Am.

He was leading through the first two days and had a two-shot lead on day three that went away after the first four holes.

"Overall, I was down one (stroke) for the tournament but then I turned it around,'' Webb said. "After nine holes, I was up three, with the guys that I was playing with. Then I had a couple of bad holes on the backside."

With five holes left, Webb knew that he was ahead of three golfers by two strokes. Then Webb had three birdies. One on hole 14, another on 15, and the last on 17.

"After I had birdied 17, I knew that I had it, as long as I didn't have a disastrous last hole," Webb said. "I knew that if I could par or even bogey the last hole that I could win it."

He parred the last hole.

Webb's closest opponent was Ross Bartell of Great Falls who was two under par and took second.

Webb was asked what went through his mind as he approached the last five holes.

"At the time, I was stressed out because I was hitting the driver pretty bad," Webb said. "I basically take it one shot at a time, not trying to get ahead of myself. That was my biggest concern, trying to make the best of every shot that I had because the driver was not helping me that day."

What did help was Webb's familiarity with Marias Valley.

"I was very familiar with Shelby because, in high school, we played a lot of tournaments there," Webb said pointing back to his years at MHS. "(As a coach in high school) we go there quite a bit, so I get to see the course a fair amount it times."

He said that you have to hit straight off of the tee because of the amount of trees present.

The competition was his first serious singles competition in five years.

"There was definitely a rust factor," Webb said. "I have had plenty of experience playing in these bigger tournaments but it's been a while."

Webb played golf at the University of Western New Mexico for a couple of years after high school and then played for the University of Idaho.

Though he hadn't competed in singles golf events, Webb has been amongst the top golfers in the Marian Hills Men's Golf League since moving back to Malta several years ago, although the type of golf is vastly different than team scramble, where you play the best ball.

"In individuals, if you hit a bad shot, it's on you," he said.

Still, playing at Marian Hills has been a great experience, and when asked what else he would like to mention, Webb showed love to his home course.

"I appreciate Cory Shelhamer for keeping our golf course in such great shape so that I could get ready for a tournament like this," Webb said. "That helps a lot when you have good greens to practice on and a good course to practice on. It goes a long way when you are getting ready for a serious competition. The whole staff does a great job."