A basic Jeopardy answer might look like this.

He possesses a flawless 4.0 grade point average and is an active basketball player along with a state golf champion.

The basic Jeopardy response to that is pretty clear.

Who is Jake McBride?

Make no mistake about it, the eldest son of Tom and Melissa McBride may not be as well known as that PGA player phenomenon known as Tiger Woods but he is closer to making Hartville, Ohio a nationally known location.

The 14-year-old McBride captured the Ohio Optimist Junior golf tournament title in a thrilling one-hole playoff at the Weatherwax Golf Club in Middletown to secure an all-expenses paid trip to West Palm Beach, Florida for the national tournament from July 24-29th.

This has been a dream come true for the son of the revered Lake High School boys’ basketball coach and multi-talented athlete at Canton’s Central Catholic High School and Walsh University.

“It feels great that the hard work has paid off. I try to go to the golf club everyday and work on my game and it’s starting to show up,” McBride said.

That was evident in his one-hole playoff. The pressure of such may force young athletes at McBride’s age to shrivel up but McBride did not show any signs of that.

What was the X-factor to McBride’s collected composure?

“I just told myself the difference between a win and loss was the difference of the trophy,” he said. “To me, there was no pressure at all. I was able to get a good shot and it was a happy and exciting moment.”

McBride didn’t relax leading up to the national golf tournament. On July 14th and 15th there was the Ohio Publinks Junior Tournament at Tam O’Shanter golf club followed with the Schorsten Invitational at the Fairways Golf Club in North Canton.

There is no way he is resting on his laurels. He plans on bettering his vaunted advantages while shoring up his deficiencies. The deficiencies McBride plans to shore up he feels will make him a formidable barrier to stop come July.

“I feel that my short putt and chipping game will help me. But look for me to be more accurate in the greens and that will be important to me, along with being accurate at the tee,” he said.

In two months, McBride will be an eighth grader at Lake Middle School. He does have aspirations for playing on the Lake High School golf team. But first, he still expects to have another breakout academic year at the middle school.

Leave it to his dad to speak candidly of his son’s academic superiority and the fluid reactant to that success.

“A lot of that has to do with the adults that he is around. His decision making is very mature and he has been making adult-type decisions,” Tom McBride said.

“Every time I get a chance to see him is something special, especially with the summer off with me being a teacher. It’s a dream for a father to see a son do so well.”

When asked if he were to win the West Palm Beach golf tournament in his age division would bring not just local, but national attention to Hartville, Jake stopped short of saying a win may bring such notice to his hometown.

“I really don’t know about that. People will ask me where Hartville is at but right now I am enjoying the biggest win in my sport right now,” he said.

Whereas big name golfers have inspired many to play this sport, it takes a lot of accuracy and timing to thrive. McBride was straightforward about the demands of the sport and what it takes to be a successful champion.

And his words were every bit as punctual as they could be.

“The advice I would give to future golfers is to be yourself and play to your best abilities,” he said. “But you cannot take anything for granted.”

Jake McBride may not be on Jeopardy anytime soon but his path will leave other competitors definitely in such.