Happy Gilmore? Yes, that's his name. Bloomington sophomore one of Indiana's best golfers.

Yes, he understands the reaction. Happy Gilmore? It has to be a misprint. Maybe a joke.

Happy Gilmore? No way.

“Sometimes, when I first introduce myself, they will look at me funny,” said Gilmore, the Bloomington South star golfer. “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.”

His given name is Landon. But Happy, a 16-year-old sophomore, began to go by “Happy” as a nickname when he was about 6 and started playing in golf tournaments — a golfer with the last name Gilmore is too easy, right?

“My mom said it was before this, but I really remember it when I was like 9 years old,” he said. “Then when I was like 13, I started going by ‘Happy’ all the time.”

More: Adam Sandler. Indiana basketball. And the 1980s. No, this isn't a Netflix movie.

Gilmore, unlike Adam Sandler’s character in the 1996 movie “Happy Gilmore”, is not a hockey player/turned golfer. “I can’t skate,” he said. But he can golf. In fact, Gilmore tied for eighth in the state last year as a freshman. His Bloomington South team, which finished fourth at state last year, will be one of the teams to watch when the two-day IHSAA state meet begins Tuesday at Prairie View Golf Club in Carmel.

“The last third of our season I’ve been playing very well,” said Gilmore, who tied for second in the regional at Champions Pointe in Henryville with an even-par 72. “It’s definitely about the best I’ve felt on a golf course, probably in my life.”

Gilmore has earned some national publicity, including a story last month on Golf.com after he shot an 80 in a U.S. Open qualifier at Old Oakland Golf Club. The “Shooter McGavin” Twitter account (named after Christopher McDonald’s villainous character in the movie), has also taken note. “If anyone sees this kid, tell him I’d love to meet him tonight on the 9th green at 9,” he tweeted to his 437,000-plus followers last month.

Gilmore can imitate Sandler’s tee shots in the movie, though he admits he has not practiced the run-up-to-the-ball routine recently.

“I haven’t done it for a while so I’m probably a little bit rusty,” he said. “But just give me a couple of balls, and I can usually make pretty good contact.”

Like Sandler’s character, one of Gilmore’s strengths is his driver.

“I’m pretty long (off the tee),” he said. “Here lately I’ve been struggling with my driver, but typically I’m very good off the tee and my putting is usually pretty good. I’ve been working hard on getting my wedges up because my irons are decent, but my strong suits are definitely off the tee and off the green.”

Gilmore’s caddie, Chris Blackmore, runs a website called TeamHappyGilmore that updates Gilmore’s tournament scores and his upcoming schedule.

“I don’t think it adds any pressure to me,” Gilmore said of his name. “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. 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.”

Hopefully, for Gilmore, that involves getting the ball to its home the next two days.

Three things to watch

The team chase

Defending state champion Center Grove and Carmel, which finished third last year at state, failed to qualify coming out of the regional. Zionsville, fifth last year, did not make it out of a brutal sectional at Lebanon despite firing a 305.

So, who are the teams to beat?

A good place to start is with Westfield and Guerin Catholic. Westfield won the sectional at Ulen Country Club by three shots over second-place Guerin Catholic and edged Guerin for the regional title by one stroke at Sandy Pines Golf Club in DeMotte (third place Valparaiso was 13 shots behind Guerin). Guerin was second place last year at the state meet, just a shot behind Center Grove.

► 'We made it out': With four of state's top-5 teams in same golf sectional, it's about survival.

Another team to watch is Bloomington South, which won the regional at Champions Pointe in Henryville by 12 strokes over Silver Creek and 16 strokes over third-place Jasper. Gilmore shot a 72 and teammates Jacob Paine (73), Nick Bellush (73) and Connor Byon (74) were all part of last year’s fourth-place state team.

Also returning from top-10 finishes last year are Hamilton Southeastern (seventh) and Cathedral (ninth). Cathedral won a tie-breaker over Noblesville in the regional at the Players Club in Yorktown and HSE was four strokes behind those two schools.

The other local team to qualify is Covenant Christian, which was second in the regional at Country Oaks in Montgomery, four strokes behind winner Evansville North.

The individual race

This will obviously become an easier race to handicap after Tuesday’s first round. Going into Tuesday, here are five names to watch:

Jacob Modleski, Guerin Catholic: Modleski, a junior, was 2-over-par at last year’s state meet to finish second, eight strokes behind state champion Kash Bellar of Peru. Modleski, last year’s Indiana Section Junior PGA champion, won the regional at Sandy Pines with a 3-under-par 69.

Derek Tabor, New Castle: New Castle came up one stroke short of advancing as a team, but the senior Tabor fired a 6-under-par 66 at the Players Club to win the regional. Tabor finished tied for fourth at least year’s state meet.

Ryan Ford, Cathedral: Ford, a senior and Cincinnati recruit, also tied for fourth at last year’s state meet. Ford finished two shots behind Tabor at the regional, firing a 68. He won the sectional at Maple Creek Golf Course by five strokes with a 70.

Jake Cesare, Westfield: He is just a freshman (as is Westfield’s Will Harvey), but Cesare has played great golf all season. He was third in a highly-competitive sectional at Ulen Country Club with a 72 and tied for third with an even-par 72 in the regional at Sandy Pines.

Adam Melliere, Zionsville: Though his team did not advance, the Zionsville junior will be one of the names to watch when he tees off at 8:09 a.m. with Tabor and Gibson Southern freshman Peyton Blackard. He tied for third with a 72 at the regional after qualifying as an individual with a 75 at the sectional. Melliere tied for 55th at last year’s state meet.

Others to watch include Crown Point junior Ray Filter (tied for fourth last year), Gilmore (tied for eighth last year), Valparaiso sophomore Aidan Gutierrez (tied for eighth last year) and Guerin Catholic Connor McNeely, who won the sectional with a 69 and was 26th at last year’s state meet.

Hot weather is here

The golf weather gods did not help this week. It is going to hot both days, which may favor those who tee off early Tuesday. Temperatures are expected to reach a high of 98 Tuesday and 99 Wednesday with bright sunny skies. Hydrate.

What to know about IHSAA state finals

The two-day high school boys golf state meet begins Tuesday at Prairie View Golf Club in Carmel. Here is what to know and three things to watch:

Tickets: $12 per person (good for both day) purchased at GoFan ticketing. No cash. Purchase tickets online in advance to show at admission gate.

Advancement: All teams and individuals will play 36 holes

Webstream:IHSAAtv.org

Live scoringGolfGenius.com

Call Star reporter Kyle Neddenriep at (317) 444-6649.

This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: Happy Gilmore competing for Indiana high school boys golf state title