BLOOMINGTON, Ind. — Happy Gilmore will be swinging golf clubs for Ball State University next year.
No, not the character made famous in the 1996 film starring Adam Sandler. This golfer is a high school player from Bloomington, Indiana.
Landon James Gilmore -- of course, his nickname is Happy -- is a two-time All-State golfer from Bloomington South High School. He will be heading northeast to Muncie and will compete for the Cardinals after committing to Ball State on Friday, WXIN-TV reported.
Go get em Happy. Pulling for you. https://t.co/4o4LOoAWDN
— Adam Sandler (@AdamSandler) June 23, 2023
One of the first people to congratulate Gilmore was Sandler, the original “Happy Gilmore” actor.
“Go get em Happy,” Sandler tweeted. “Pulling for you.”
Gilmore also got a shout-out tweet from Shooter McGavin, the character played by actor Christopher McDonald in Happy Gilmore.
The real-life Happy Gilmore, a rising senior at Bloomington South, is ranked 497th in the Golfweek boys junior rankings, according to Golfweek. He has played on the U.S. Kids Tour events, as well as competing in the Hurricane National Championships, where he was named the Player of the Year in 2020, Golf Digest reported.
“Sometimes, when I first introduce myself, they will look at me funny,” Gilmore told the Indianapolis Star. “But if my golf bag is there and has my name on it, that will kind of help a little bit. But it never fails. At some point they will ask me, ‘Is that your real name?’ or ‘How did you get that name?’ Something along those lines.”
Congrats but I tell you what, you’d be something in one of those long drive contests. Hell, you’d probably make a very good living. Traveling around, hustling at driving ranges. Just a thought. https://t.co/TzbPTQI39T
— Shooter McGavin (@ShooterMcGavin_) June 23, 2023
Gilmore finished tied for seventh place at the Indiana high school boys golf state tournament earlier this month, shooting even par over 36 holes at Prairie View Golf Club, according to Golfweek. He was the regional tournament a week earlier at Country Oaks in Montgomery.
Gilmore said he got his nickname when he was 6 and began playing in golf tournaments, the Star reported.
“My mom said it was before this, but I really remember it when I was like 9 years old,” Gilmore told the newspaper. “Then when I was like 13, I started going by ‘Happy’ all the time.”
Gilmore’s nickname has turned some heads, but he more than lived up to the Hollywood hype.
“I don’t think it adds any pressure to me. But I do know that whatever I do is going to be seen. Especially as far as leaderboards when people are scrolling down and see ‘Happy Gilmore’ they are going to look at it, obviously,” Gilmore told Golf Digest. “So, I do know that, but I don’t let it get in my head or that I have to play good because of it. I just go out and do my thing.”
