TOP AREA HIGH SCHOOL ATHLETES OF THE LAST 30 YEARS: TIM HAMILTON

By Mike Tupa

Aug. 15, 2025

BARTLESVILLE AREA SPORTS REPORT

During his nearly 30 years of covering area high school sports for either the Bartlesville Examiner-Enterprise or the Bartlesville Area Sports Report, Mike Tupa has enjoyed the opportunity to observe some incredible athletes.

This is an ongoing series highlighting each few days one of those athletes from the 1996-97 school year through the present. The list is not in chronological order. The athletes are presented in random sequence.

TODAY’S SPOTLIGHT

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TIM HAMILTON (Bartlesville)

Wrestling (late 2000s/early 2010s)

Even if Bruin wrestling were to survive another 1,000 years, it's doubtful it would see a more skilled warrior or giant-hearted competitor than Hamilton.

To start with, while Bartlesville has been the gold standard in swimming competition for programs that have been around since the 1950s, almost the opposite is true of wrestling.

Not that Bartlesville has lacked some outstanding gladiators of the grappling set — Chuck Hetrick, Lyle Taylor, Ed Shaw, Ben Bolt, Clint Eads, Wes Barnhart, Colton Wilson, Brent Remington, David Harris, Tyler Wilson, Marvin Lewis, Taylor Woolman, Michael Hamilton, Corwin Strachan and Laif Jones, just to name some that won state titles or placed in the top three.

But, on the whole, the Col-Hi/Sooner/Bartlesville mat legacy is not among the best in state history. Since 1968, Bartlesville has captured only 11 state championships — an average through 2025 of one every five-plus seasons.

What makes Tim Hamilton amazing is this: All by himself he has won three of Bartlesville's 11 state titles. Not only is that a fantastic achievement for Bartlesville.

Any Oklahoma high wrestler that has won three state titles during his career is a phenomenal story. Not only that — as a freshman (2009) he finished third in the state.

He would earn a scholarship to the University of Oklahoma. Even though he didn't experience the same level of success on the collegiate level, what Hamilton accomplished at Bartlesville remains one of the great stories in the local prep legacy.

As mentioned, in February 2009, the freshman Hamilton hammered out third place at 132 pounds, knocking off a Moore opponent, 6-5, in the third-place match.

A year later, while still competing at 132 pounds, Hamilton overwhelmed a Tulsa Union opponent in the state final, 12-3.

Hamilton bumped up to 145 pounds the next season. In February 2011 he became the first-year Bruin to win multiple wrestling state titles. He outlasted a Mustang grappler in the final, 5-3.

In 2012, Hamilton completed this three-peat by thumping a Broken Arrow rival, 7-2, in the 145-pound final.

Incidentally, in that same state tournament, Hamilton's younger brother Michael would finish as state runner-up at 138 pounds. Michael would go on to win a state title the next season, making him and Tim the only siblings in Bartlesville history to win state wrestling crowns.

Tim did it all with class,quiet confidence and sportsmanship.

He was a true champion.

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This series has included the following athletes who are in particular order:

-Jena’ Williams

-Eric Rolfs

-Chris Smith

-Jill Bryan

-Barron Tanner Jr.

-Hailey Tucker

-Jeremy Dunkle

-Whitney Metcalf

Tim and Michael Hamilton