Mayfield senior Landen Clark took the win at the Western Athletic Conference (WAC) High School Golf Championship held on Friday, Oct. 2 at Amsterdam Municipal Golf Course. The championship brought together 54 athletes representing nine schools. 

Landen says he went into the competition feeling confident and ready to win.

“It’s easy to get down on yourself, but being a senior I knew there was no time for that,” said Landen. “There’s no time for pouting, there’s no time for being upset, there’s only time for golf.”

This confidence came with many hours of hard work in and outside of regular practice hours, reviewing videos to help refine his skills, and support from his teammates, coaches and most importantly, his family.

With a father and grandfather who both won conference championships at his age, Landen says golf has been a large part of his upbringing and he’s been golfing with his family since he was seven years old. When asked what his favorite part about the sport is, he says how challenging it can be and the precision required to be successful at it.

“It really takes a tremendous amount of time and dedication to be a good golfer,” said Landen. “When you break down the science behind it, it’s a hard thing to accomplish and I love that it’s not easily attainable. I feel blessed to be good at it.”

Landen’s coach, Jake Benaquisto, commented on his performance and character as a leader

“It was awesome to witness Landen’s performance at the WAC Cup. He shot a 74 after 18 holes, which had him tied with another player for 1st place and then he took the win in a sudden death playoff,” said Benaquisto. ”Landen has been a role model and a leader for his team all season. I’m proud to see him end his golf career at Mayfield on a high note.”

Landen credits the coaching staff, which also includes Mike Iannotti, with being a constant source of support. They offered constructive feedback to identify areas of improvement and kept him focused, grounded and confident in his abilities.

As he enters the home stretch of his high school career and looks towards the future, Landen plans to attend SUNY Delhi to major in pre-law or political science with the hopes of becoming a lawyer and one day enter politics. His plans include golfing at the collegiate level.