Standing in the tee box on the eighth hole at the Overlook Country Club in Hollis, a 194- yard downhill par 3, Brett Borbidge had a decision to make.

Would he use his 6-iron or 7- iron? Maybe his 8-iron?

Glancing at teammate Jimmy Fellows, a left-hander, Borbidge asked to borrow a club. Turning his hat backward, and taking his stance on the opposite side of the tee box, the suddenly southpawed senior swung Fellows’ 4-iron and planted the ball three feet from the pin.

That’s Brett Borbidge, said his hockey coach, Tim Walsh, who noted the star forward, for much of his four-year career, brought much the same mentality to the ice.

“He definitely does things a little differently,” said Walsh. “A lot of people have asked me over the last couple years, ‘Do you have trouble with him?’ “I’ve always said, ‘No, Brett wants to win as much as anyone. He just goes about it a different way.’

“Some people see it as arrogance. I see him as a very confident kid who is very comfortable with himself but wants to do everything he can to win.”

While Borbidge has never lacked exceptional talent, no matter his demeanor, Walsh said something unexpected happened late in this past hockey season.

With the Falcons coming off a 1-2-1 stretch to end January, Borbidge put the jokester away and replaced it with a determination his coach had yet to see.

“Brett has always been a very talented, very offensive-minded kid, and he really came into his own with his intensity down the stretch,” said Walsh. “He was clearly our best player the last month of the season and played the best hockey he’s ever played the last few games of the season and in the playoffs.”

The senior captain led Bow on a 4-1-0 run to end the season and then, in the playoffs, skated from the box in overtime and, following a 10-minute major penalty, set up the game-winning goal in a 4-3 win at Goffstown.

“Instead of going 80 or 90 percent in drills, I was going 100 percent in practice and in games. I felt a lot more serious … a lot more focused,” said Borbidge.

“Since I’m a senior, and it was my last six or seven games, it kind of hit me, and I just really wanted to go out as a state champion.”

He came close.

Against Spaulding in the Division II semifinals, Borbidge had a hand in each of Bow’s four goals. But the Falcons allowed a late two-goal lead to slip away and lost, 5-4, in overtime.

Even with the personal and team success, Borbidge said he will never forget how close the Falcons came to reaching the first title game in school history.

“We were just so close to winning it … Before the third period, I thought we were going to get rid of the burden (of never making it to the final),” he said. “It’s just tough it ended the way it did, but I’ll never forget the emotions of that game.”

Spaulding coach Paul George said he will never forget it either, noting Borbidge dazzled Red Raiders’ defenders throughout the contest.

Walsh said those skills developed quickly as the forward evolved from a mediocre skater as a freshman to a standout in all aspects of the game.

“He has a very creative, free-spirited mind … creative to the point I’ve let him get away with trying things I won’t let other kids do. It’s been that way since sophomore year,” said Walsh. “He’s got great vision. His shot isn’t the hardest, but he makes up for it with his accuracy.”