KALISPELL — Last year, Polson's Max Milton won the 2024 Class A individual state golf title as a freshman.
While a win at the state tournament is always an impressive feat, the win was special for Milton because he won on his home course at Polson Bay.
“Seeing all my family and having people there to comfort me, and I kind of tried to make it feel like two normal rounds,” Milton said. “Played really good the first day and then was able to hang on the second day. (It) just makes it a lot easier to feel more comfortable over every shot when I've played there so many times.”
WATCH THE VIDEO:
Among the family members at the tournament supporting Milton was his father, Cameron, who is also the coach of the Polson golf team.
For Cameron Milton, he could not dream of a better scenario for his son’s first state tournament win.
“As a dad at home at the golf course, that you're the PGA professional at, it's not something I'll ever forget,” Cameron Milton said. “As a freshman, it was really, really special.”
With that win under his belt, both Max and Cameron have their sights on improving the entire Polson golf team.
With Max expected to be at the top of the leaderboard once again, he believes this young Pirates team has the chance to become a contender.
“We don't have any seniors yet, so everyone's going to come back, so kind of just hoping that we make state and can build some experience under pressure,” Max Milton said. “Hopefully one of these next couple years ... we can get it done.”
But with that team goal in mind, Milton still has his eyes on taking home another individual state title in a class full of talented golfers.
“I think if I play how I want to and play my best, then it can be just as good as everyone else's," Max Milton said. "So as long as everything goes as planned, and it'll be tough to tell right now, but if we all play good, it'll be pretty close, which will be kind of fun.”
