Crosspoint Christian's Davis Hartwell continues to prove that he belongs among the top high school golfers in the nation.
One year after finishing as runner-up in the National High School Golf Invitational, the incoming senior came through with another top-10 finish in the same tournament last week at Pinehurst Resort and Country Club in North Carolina.
The two-time 3A/2A/1A champion and Oregon State commit shot a 6-under 210 in three rounds to finish tied for 10th place with Will Pizza of Utah, 10 strokes behind the winner, Rory Asselta of New Jersey. The tournament is an invite-only event for high school state champions.
“I thought it was one of my better tournaments of the summer, for sure,” Hartwell said. “Mentally, I was super focused and super locked in. I was more focused on shot by shot, instead of the results. It helps me stay calm.”
Hartwell shot 68 and 69 in the first two rounds – matching his scores from last year at the tournament -- to stand six strokes off the lead. In the third round, he shot 2-under through four holes on Pinehurst's No. 8 course before hitting a rough patch, three-putting on three holes, to fall back in the pack.
“My speed-putting on the last day was not great, for sure,” he said.
His father, Jayme Hartwell, who also serves as a swing coach, said the tournament was typical of Davis' play this summer.
“He played really well,” Jayme Hartwell said. “He can't get away from making a few sloppy bogeys, but plenty of scoring. All of those rounds easily could've been four-to-six-under. But that's golf.”
Davis Hartwell finished strong to move back into the top 10 and secure an invitation to next year's tournament. He carded an eagle on the par-five No. 17, hitting an approach shot to within one foot of the pin, and finished with a final-round 73.
“It's always nice having those comeback shots like that,” Davis Hartwell said. “It meant everything. I get to go back next year and compete, same tournament, same place. It'll be a lot of fun.”
Davis said it was “hard not to have expectations” for the tournament after finishing second in last year's event on the PGA Frisco course in Texas. The opportunity to play at Pinehurst – which has hosted the U.S. Open, PGA Championship and Ryder Cup – was a thrill.
“When I go to places like Pinehurst, I try to enjoy myself the best I can,” Davis said. “For sure, it was shot by shot, but I was hoping that I'd be close to the same result as last year.”
Davis carried momentum into the tournament coming off a second-place performance in the Brandon Wu Championship, an AJGA event in Reno, Nev., July 7-10. He shot 71, 72 and 69 to finish at 1-under, four strokes behind the winner.
“I played super solid there, super consistent,” he said. “Just fairways and greens, two-putts, and then taking care of the par-fives.”
The top-five finish in Reno gave him fully exempt status for AJGA tournaments in 2026. It's a bonus he otherwise would have to earn by accumulating points on the AJGA circuit, a costly pursuit considering he lives in Klamath Falls.
“That's always been hard to accomplish for us because with AJGA, you have to travel everywhere to play,” Jayme said.
Davis has grown to 6-foot-2, adding about an inch-and-a-half since last summer. He got fitted for a new set of TaylorMade clubs in the spring.
“It's a little bit of a good thing that I've gotten taller and stronger and I've got different clubs,” he said. “Adjustment helps motivate me to get out and practice more.”
Jayme said Davis is hitting 320, 330 yards off the tee. He said his club-head speed approaches 125 mph (PGA average is 115) and the ball speed off the tee can reach up to 190 mph (PGA average is 174).
“He's always been able to hit it far. Now it's crazy,” Jayme said. “In the past, the driver could be a wild card during a round, now it's probably his strength.”
The other aspects of Davis' game also are evolving.
“He's become not a great putter, but a good putter,” Jayme said. “If his wedge game is good, that's when he really scores. He's continued to work on his wedge game. That's just basically distance control. He's hitting gap wedge like 150 yards sometimes. It's just figuring out how to control those distances.”
Davis said he has made improvement from last summer, even if his best rounds haven't been as strong.
“Last year I got hot in a couple tournaments, but I think now I'm playing more consistent golf,” he said.
Davis is scheduled to play for Oregon in the Hogan Cup at Riverside Golf & Country Club Aug. 16-17 in Portland. He also is entered in the KJ Choi Foundation Seattle Junior Championship, an AJGA event Aug. 25-28 at Bear Creek Country Club in Woodinville, Wash.
jerryu@osaa.org
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