By BILL BIGHAUS
Of The Gazette Staff
Amid the cold and wind of a gloomy spring, Malta's Gordon Webb has perfected his golf game.

Whenever the weather keeps him off his hometown Marian Hills Country Club course, the reigning two-time state Class B champion simply heads for the living room of his house. There, near a picture window, is a golf hole - complete with cup - cut right through the smooth blue carpet and hardwood floor.

From distances up to 20 feet, the 19-year-old senior can chip and putt for as long as he likes without a worry about the elements.

Next best thing
"It's not as good as the real thing, but it's next best when the weather is terrible," Webb said with a laugh.

All of his practice - indoors and out - has kept him in the win column this spring.

Webb has topped the leader board at all seven tournaments he has competed in leading up to the state championships - but he did lose out in a chip-off last Saturday at Chinook after tying for first with senior teammate Cohen Ereaux.

He bounced back to win Monday's Northern B divisional tourney in Shelby by two strokes with a 2-under-par 70.

Now it's on to state, set for Tuesday and Wednesday at Cottonwood Hills Golf Course in Bozeman.

Webb's diligence over the years has made him one of the toughest golfers to beat since Brandon Davison of Columbus won four consecutive State B-C crowns from 1995 to 1998.

As Webb goes for title No. 3, he doesn't get caught up in personal accolades.

"I just try to go out there and play my best," he said. "What I'd really like most is for us to win the team championship."

That sense of team makes Webb a joy to be around, said Malta golf coach Roger Amundson, a local chiropractor.

"To be honest with you, what I really like about him is with the game he has and with what he has accomplished, he is very unassuming," Amundson said. "He just goes about his business and gets it done."

Malta, which beat Fairfield by one stroke (314-315) for the divisional title earlier this week, was third at state last year after placing second the previous two years. In the 10-year history of the boys golf program, the Mustangs have never captured a state team title.

Right on target
"We all seem to be playing pretty good," said Webb, who has already received a golf scholarship to Western New Mexico University in Silver City. "I think we have a really good shot at it."

Having the 6-foot, 165-pound Webb on the tee box will certainly aid Malta's cause as it battles reigning champion Deer Lodge and others for the title.

He can consistently hit the ball 280 yards off the tee, and his accomplishments this spring include shooting a personal-best-tying 6-under 66 last week at Roundup's Pine Ridge Golf Course. That was the second consecutive year he carded a 66 there, and Malta's 294 team total also tied the school record.

Webb won the medalist title at last year's state championship by one stroke over senior James Williams of Seeley Swan at Marias Valley Golf & Country Club in Shelby. He shot rounds of 70 and 73 for a 143 total.

Those two also dueled for medalist honors in 2006 at the Polson Golf & Country Club, with Webb's scores of 72 and 69 for a 141 total delivering a five-stroke victory.

Three of the Mustangs' spring tournaments have been scrubbed by snow or poor playing conditions, but Webb's game is coming together despite the weather and some pain in his shoulder (from a basketball injury) and lower back.

He credits the putting practice in his living room with helping to make him more accurate on the greens, particularly from inside 10 feet.

During competition this spring, Webb, whose stroke average is 72.42, said his approach shots have also been on target. "Sometimes I hit the driver pretty good," he said. "I've been putting pretty well, too.

"Just my chipping is kind of iffy right now."

Webb has been pursuing golf since he was 4 or 5, with his father, Jim, providing instruction over the years and his mother, Kristine, offering plenty of support.

In addition to a well-rounded game, he also displays an even temperament on the course. "The funny thing is, when you watch him finish a round you can't tell if he's 10-over or 4-under," Amundson said. "One thing is for sure, he is never satisfied. He always wants to do better."

Webb competed in statewide events at an early age, playing from the red tees at Yellowstone Country Club as a 10-year-old at the 1999 Montana State Golf Association Junior Tournament and scoring a 96.

"I just like being out on the course in the summer," he said. "That's all I did, and I've just grown to like it."

Family friend and golfing partner Tony Kindle, 45, was there when Webb first began playing. Kindle's 17-year-old son, K.C., is a junior on the Malta team.

"He's just pretty solid in all parts of it," Kindle said of Webb's game. "He hits it plenty far and keeps it in play. The bugger also makes putts when it matters."

But Kindle said he is most impressed by Webb's "drive to be good."

"He puts in a lot of effort here at home that no one else sees but us," he said. "And the mental part of the game ... he wants to win. He wants to be a good player."

Webb, who turned 19 on May 4, has played football, basketball and golf at Malta. He was a wide receiver on the Mustangs' 2006 state championship football team.

"There's not much to do in Malta but play sports," said Webb, who will leave high school with touchdowns, baskets and a double eagle to his credit.

"I think that I have come a long way, mentally and everything," he said of his four years of golf at Malta. "I hit the ball pretty well as a freshman, but I didn't have the short game that I have now. I'm just more experienced, and that helps me play a higher level of golf."

Over the summer, Webb has competed in the past three Montana State Amateurs. His 4-under 68 was the low round on the final day of last year's State Am at Laurel Golf Club and helped him finish fourth overall.

Kindle was packing Webb's clubs during the final round.

"He helped me a lot," said Webb. "He knows a lot about my game."

At the nine-hole Marian Hills layout at home, Webb doesn't have to contend with all the traps and trees, along with the quick and sloping greens, usually found at the courses that host the state's major events.

"To be performing like he does at other golf courses is really commendable," Kindle said.

Webb said he is looking forward to attending Western New Mexico.

"They have good, competitive schedule for a Division II school, and they've got a really good team, too," Webb said. "I also get to play year-round down there. That's nice."

He already knows one of the players on the team, freshman Tyson Bickford, who played his prep golf and was on a state championship squad at Billings West.

Davison still ranks as the only male golfer in state history to claim four consecutive individual state titles.

If Webb stretches his state title streak to three, only a one-stroke loss at Marias Valley during his freshman year will have kept him from matching Davison's remarkable feat.

That missed par putt, which cleared the way for a winning birdie by Fort Benton's Keaten Labrel, is etched in Webb's memory but isn't a burden.

"I just missed a little four-footer and he came up and made a 25-foot birdie for the win," Webb recalled.

"I think about it, but you've just got to let it go. It would have been nice to have, but you can't win them all."

With Webb, it only seems that way.