Mental reset helps Madigan reach golf breakthrough at 1B state championship

ODESSA — Eli Madigan, a junior at Wilson Creek and golfer for the Odessa Tigers, finished fifth in the 1B state golf championships. After falling just short of placing last year and a year of hard work, Madigan made a leap into the top five.  

“It was special,” Madigan said. “It was coaches last year coaching, so it was super awesome to be able to share a moment with Dillon (Jahns). He's helped me a lot with my swing and with just my even mindset for life. Just knowing that no matter what you do at the end of the day, it's just around a golf, so nobody's ever going to play perfect.” 

After shooting a 96 and just missing the cut to make it to day two of the 2025 1B state golf championships, Madigan rebounded this year with an 84 on day one. From there, he finished the weekend shooting a 165 solidifying his fifth-place finish, and honors on the All-State golf team.  

Madigan recalled getting into his head too much last year, struggling to flush a bad shot and move to the next swing. This year, that was different.  

“I went in with the mindset of keeping my head in a good space, even if I have a bad hole, just remembering that how far I've made it is good,” Madigan said “Staying in a good head space of a one shot mentality. If I hit a bad shot, got to move on and accept what happened and move on to the next shot and take the best swing I can.” 

Since he was 12, Madigan has been playing golf competitively. He remembers going out to Moses Pointe with his dad and during those times that his love for golf developed. It was around then that he first met one of his mentors, Bill Porter.  

He attributes his coaching as a key factor in his development as a player and in the last year between state championships.  

“He helped me get a better mindset,” he said. “Every time you make a swing, you want to go in with a game plan for that swing, and you can't focus on your score too much, you have to focus on what the next best shot can be.” 

When he first met Madigan, Porter recognized the unique form he played with. “He plays golf crosshanded, which is very unique,” he said.  

Instead of the traditional form where the left hand is at the top of the club and the right hand below, Madigan actually swings with the opposite form.  

“I just remember talking to him about that, and he wanted to continue playing cross-handed. It would be very difficult to change,” he said.  

Madigan said Porter was very helpful in developing the mental side of his game. On day two of the golf championships, he recalled a moment where his hard work paid off.  

“I was in one of the bunkers, I was about 185 yards out, and I game planned what I wanted to do,” Madigan said. “I thought about it for a good little bit, and I was thinking if I hit a seven iron and sort of hit it from left to right, I can either end up just short of the green or on the green. I wanted to just plan on making flush contact out of the bunker, because its hard to get good contact out of sand.”  

After he slowed the game down, planned his shot and took, the ball landed about 25 feet away on the green for a birdie, he said.  

Throughout the weekend Madigan could feel he was improving from the previous year. He realized a new sense of confidence he didn’t have a year prior. Also helping him stay centered mentally was his faith.  

Madigan is a practicing Christian and has built a habit of utilizing prayer to calm himself before competing at tournaments.  

“It's sort of something I realized in the last couple of years. If I step into faith and just pray that I can stay calm and make the next best swing, it helps me a lot,” Madigan said. “Just knowing that whatever I'm doing, I'm doing it for God, so in the end the results don't matter, because I'll still be good at the end of the day.” 

After two days of golf, Madigan was elated to receive his fifth place medal. Not only was he proud to share the moment with his coach, but to also represent Odessa and Wilson Creek. 

“It was pretty surreal,” he said. “No one's ever finished that high, except a girl for (Odessa), so it felt surreal to be able to be there and have that moment with Dillon and my parents, and just to know that I accomplished what I wanted to accomplish. I was definitely proud to represent Odessa and bring back a medal for Wilson Creek.” 

Madigan will be entering his senior year this fall. And with one more year to play high school golf, he’s focused on continuing to improve his short game and potentially build up his profile as a potential recruit for college programs.  

“I think there's a big difference between playing golf and playing golf competitively,” he said. “I've realized that there's something about me playing competitively, where my mind just locks in, and I wasn't able to do that sophomore year. Something about this season that I was so locked in mentally, even when I hit a bad shot, I was really good at moving on and scrambling and making the next best swing, that's something I know can take me far.”

    From left: Dillon Jahns, Eli Madigan and Mike Carlquist take a group photo at the 2026 1B state golf championships after Madigan received his fifth place medal.
  

    Eli Madigan holds his club over his shoulder after receiving his fifth place medal at the 1B state golf championship.
  

    Eli Madigan (second from left) stands in line with fellow state golf placers at the 2026 1B state golf championship.