TRENTON – Meanwhile, in the women’s division of the Bangor Daily News Amateur Golf Tournament, Thea Davis of Palmyra marked a big victory.

Yeah, she won the tournament. OK, she didn’t exactly tear it up, struggling to a hefty 17-over-par 90 at Bar Harbor Golf Course in Sunday’s third round, a particularly forgettable score coming after her well-crafted rounds of 78 and 77 at Kebo Valley and Bangor Municipal.

But it was enough. Enough to hold off sturdy veteran Martha White of Hampden, whose struggles with the constant 2-club wind and yips with the putter produced an inopportunistic 89 and a second-place finish, two shots back.

Alright, maybe this wasn’t a very strong field with only 34 women entered and talented Julie Green coming back off surgery.

None of that mattered to Thea Davis. What mattered was she proved she could win. And by winning, she proved once and for all to herself that the fear is gone. She is no longer afraid to be noticed.

“This is a real coming out for me,” said the 36-year-old mother of two, her hazel eyes shining under the black visor with “Boom Boom” written on it. “I always dreamed of winning a tournament like this, but it scared me. I guess because I was raised to be invisible. I was raised not to be noticed.”

Invisible. Yes, that is what Davis has been on the Maine golf scene for far too long.

Listen to Davis recount her journey from a shy 13-year-old who picked up a club for the first time and almost immediately discovered she was good, to 30-something “newcomer” on the Maine women’s golf scene and you can’t help but wonder. How many more Thea Davises are out there?

“I’m the middle of five children. None of my brothers and sisters played golf. I didn’t have a lot of support from my family. I had a lot of fear of people noticing me, noticing that I could hit the ball a long way. If someone saw me hit and said something about it, I’d stop playing right there,” Davis recounted.

How does someone develop a love-hate relationship with something they are good at doing?

Davis tried to explain.

Her parents, John and Laura Willey of Palmyra, introduced her to the game.

“I remember they asked me to play in a Scotch foursome with them. That’s the first time I remember playing,” Davis said.

She played. She played more. She got better. But her talent went, if not unrecognized, then unencouraged.

“No, no one ever mentioned playing in high school or college or anything,” she said.

So when high school ended Davis did what a lot of shy, unencouraged women did. She jumped into the comfortable anonymity of being a housewife.

At age 18 she married Mickey Davis, an avid golfer. The two played often, quietly, together. When she was 20, the babies started coming – Sara and Nate.

“We used to take them along when they were babies. We jury-rigged a padded basket and they rode in the back of the cart. But when they got to two years old… well, at that age they don’t know to be quiet,” she said.

While her children grew, Davis played perhaps five rounds of golf a year.

The turning point came last year. She decided the kids were old enough for her to return to the course, this time with an eye on competing. Even if competing meant being noticed.

“I just decided to see what I could do,” Davis explained, noting she had resolved a lot of her childhood anger with the help of a chiropractor.

She quickly established a 10-handicap at Palmyra Golf Club. A friend asked her to play on the Metropolitan Team. Another friend asked her to play in a tournament in Canada. She finished third in the first women’s draw in the BDN, took fourth in the State Amateur, and second in another event.

This year Davis has won three of the five Women’s Maine State Golf Association events she played. Which set up this weekend’s first tournament victory.

“This is a real dream for me,” said Davis, as the winner’s trophy was handed to her.

The future?

“I know now I can do it. My family is extremely supportive. I’m going to play in the New England Amateur at Martindale in July. I’m going to see how good I can be,” said Thea Davis, fresh off her victory over the fear of being noticed.