BANGOR – Former Camden Hills Regional High School graduate Daulton Wickenden played three sports in high school, but in college plays just the one he has the most passion for in life, golf.

As a member of the Camden Hills golf team, Wickenden got the taste of gold twice as he helped the team win the Maine State Class A Championship his junior and senior years.

Wickenden is now a freshman at Husson University and a member of the Husson Men’s Golf team. He is studying Business Administration. 

Wickenden was named Husson's Male Athlete of the Week for the week ending Sept. 12. After shooting an impressive four-under-par to earn medalist honors at the 2015 Maine Intercollegiate Golf Championship. He recorded a 68, four-under par, on day one and an even 72 on day two for a 140. Husson placed second out of 11 competing teams with a total score of 608. He was also named the North Atlantic Conference Golfer and Rookie of the Week.

For many athlete’s going from high school to college sports is a huge jump. Wickenden looks at golf at Husson as much the same as Camden Hills.

“In a way I compare the level of play in college versus high school quite similar,” said Wickenden. “It has started the same way high school did. I say that because in both cases when I joined the team as a freshman we had a very young team with a couple of leaders who were seniors. In high school that being Either Miles Ingraham or John Vanorsdall. In college that being Greg Martin. I met Greg this summer as we worked together at the Samoset Resort in golf. Greg has taken me under his wing and been a huge help to me thus far.”

Wickenden continued, “Our high school team freshman year was pretty solid, but we always came up one step short. Second in KVAC’s, third in States. Pretty solid but not where we knew we were capable of being. This forced my teammates and me over the next couple of summers to put in some work and get to where we wanted to be which was State Champions. We were able to accomplish this winning states the final two years of my high school career. While the level of competition in college is absolutely stronger and more competitive, I consider it awfully similar to that of high school. Our team’s last three events we have come in second place losing by one shot two of those times. All three events were fields of 10+ teams, so we have something to be happy about but a little short of where we know we are capable of being which is that NO.1 team. Having the strong level of competition has really driven me to practice and work hard to improve, and I believe that is what has helped me get my game back. We have the NAC championship coming up in a few weeks, and I think that will be our time to conquer that No.1 position. 

One of the things Wickenden feels very fortunate about is the level of players, and people he gets to play with as well has his coaches he has had.

"He’s a great player [Greg Martin], team leader, and someone I really look up to and admire,” said Wickenden. “Also I have been lucky enough to have two amazing coaches. Throughout high school, I had Mark Wallace, for all four years, and he was fantastic. He understood my game as well as just about anyone and was always able to calm me down or talk me through it when I was having a rough day. After that, I joined Husson’s golf team, and again I lucked out big time with Coach Mike Dugas. I’ve known Mike for a number of years now playing countless events with his two sons Gavin and Eric. I didn’t have the best summer golf-wise and struggled in the few tournaments I played in. I came into college wondering if this would continue or if I could figure it out. Day one at practice was the turning point. We were on the driving range and my coach (Mike) took a video of my swing and pointed out one small thing to me, and it has made all the difference.”

One of the things most golfers have to come to terms with is to stop worrying about what you can’t control. Once a golfer starts thinking about what they have to do two or three holes ahead is when the game starts to fall apart. Wickenden certainly understands this and has experienced it first hand. 

“I would agree with this yes. An example is my first college match,” said Wickenden. “I got to the first tee super nervous, and all I could think was just hit the ball down the fairway it's not that hard. That’s exactly what I did. A made par on the first hole and it sorta settled me in. I finished the front nine at even par, and that's when I started thinking about the score. I started thinking ahead in the round about what I needed to make on certain holes in order to shoot a certain score. That's when it all fell apart I shot plus seven on the back nine and finished with a disappointing 79. That’s when the coach pulled me to the side and reminded me of the biggest trick to golf. Take it one shot at a time because that’s all you control. Focus on that one current shot and don’t get ahead of yourself. Since that little talk my match scores have been much better and instead of crumbling on the back nine of rounds, I have been able to finish out with strings of birdies rather than bogeys. I am now a firm believer of taking the game one shot at a time and not looking too far ahead.”

Throughout his high school sports career, Wickenden was a top tier athlete in golf, baseball, and basketball. Why golf to play in college?

“Middle school and high school I had three major sports that I enjoyed playing,” said Wickenden. “Baseball, basketball, and golf. The basketball was more of a middle school thing for me, and I never really had what it took to be a good high school player, so I decided to manage the team instead because I still really had a passion for the sport and enjoyed being a part of it. Baseball I loved all the way up through and made some amazing friends through it and enjoyed a great senior season where our team made it much farther than anyone including myself believed we would.” 

Wickenden continued, “The reason I chose golf to focus on and continue to play past high school is because golf is something I enjoy more than anything else. Occasionally by the end of a baseball or basketball season I would be ready for a little break from the sport but in golf when the season rolls to an end all I can think about is for the snow to melt so I can get back out there and tee it up. It’s my biggest passion and something I love to play competitively as well as with my friends.”

Wickenden has played at a vast number of courses and like every athlete, he had to have his favorite.  

“This is a tough one. I have been lucky enough to play a ton of courses in the state, and I have a bunch of favorites,” said Wickenden. “It’s a toss up between Sunday River, Sugarloaf, Belgrade Lakes, Clinton, and, of course, the Samoset. I also love playing Goose River, which is where I grew up spending day after day playing as many holes as I could get in before dark and where I really learned how to play. If I had to choose one course, I would say Sunday River is my favorite. Most dreaded course to play is actually kind of funny because it happens to be one of my favorite courses and that's Sugarloaf. I love playing there and would play there every day if I could but every time I do play there I lose a handful of golf balls because that course is just so damn difficult.”  

You can follow Winckenden’s season by clicking on this link: http://athletics.husson.edu/sports/mgolf/index

Stories on Wickenden
MGOLF: Wickenden leads Maine Intercollegiate Golf Championship
http://athletics.husson.edu/sports/mgolf/2015-16/releases/20150920grqhq3

MGOLF: Martin, Wickenden grab NAC honors
http://athletics.husson.edu/sports/mgolf/2015-16/releases/20150914o5nsuo

MGOLF: Husson ready for MEIGA Championship
http://athletics.husson.edu/sports/mgolf/2015-16/releases/20150918qt1x26

You can reach Ron Hawkes at sports@penbaypilot.com