You might not know Daulet Tuleubayev (12) personally, but you might recognize him from the sleep awareness bulletin board in Manzanita titled “Which Daulet are you?” The interactive flowchart features several photos of Daulet in various states of sleepiness, ranging from “Dozing Daulet” to “Passed-out Daulet” to “Perky Daulet.”

But there are so many more versions of him left uncovered — like “Golf Legend Daulet,” triumphant after the Harker golf team won NorCal for the first time in school history. If you look further back, there’s “Chess Enthusiast Daulet,” the nine-year old boy engrossed in mental acrobatics with his opponents.

But to Daulet, the games of chess and golf aren’t so different after all.

“I enjoy how golf gives me time to think and strategize, and in a way, it’s kind of like chess where I’m not playing against someone else, I’m not focused on someone else’s score,” he said. “It’s extremely mental like that. You handle yourself and you’re not letting someone’s score get to you.”

Born and raised in Kazakhstan, he moved to the U.S. at age 15 to attend Phillips Exeter Academy, a boarding school in New Hampshire. He remembers that one moment on the golf course struck him as particularly “American.”

“We were in Florida for a golf camp,” he said. “My mom didn’t have a driver’s license, so we got a golf cart and drove around the city, which is hilarious because none of the cops really cared. And we saw a jogger coming right by us, and she just smiled and waved at us. We were surprised because we were like, ‘Did we know that person? Who was that?’ It was nice to realize that was America’s culture, that everyone was on friendly terms. In my country, when you walk by, you kind of keep your head down. If I was to do that in Kazakhstan, people would be like, ‘Are you crazy? What do you want from me?’”

After adjusting to life on the East Coast, Daulet moved again two years later: this time to the Bay Area. It was a career move — a Stanford coach suggested that it would give him more time to improve his golf game. Since he transferred to Harker in junior year, he has appreciated the overwhelming support from his friends and classmates.

“When I would leave class saying I have to go to a golf match everyone would say, ‘Good luck! Go crush ’em! You can do it!’ and I’m like, ‘Thanks, guys!’” Daulet said. “When I wasn’t in school for three days [for a tournament] everyone’s asking, ‘How’d you do?’ And I would say, ‘Pretty well,’ and they’d be like, ‘That’s awesome dude!’ Every time I go back home at the end of the day, I’m always happy.”

The Stanford coach’s advice about moving to California paid off: In November, Daulet officially signed his National Letter of Intent to play golf for the Cardinal. According to him, the game of golf is largely mental.

“Most of my victories have been from behind, as in I wasn’t leading when coming into the final round,” he said. “I guess in that regard, I wasn’t paying as much attention about what the leader was scoring, but I always say to myself at the end of the day is, ‘Let’s go out and play your best golf. Whatever happens, happens.’ You can’t control your score, but you can control your attitude. So even if I get up to a bad start, if I keep my head in the game, I start playing awesome after that.”

Over the years, golf has come to define everything from his weekends to his wardrobe choices. But despite his athletic success, Daulet tries to maintain balance in his life, a mentality that comes from his mother.

“[My mom] made sure I branched out,” he said. “I had an opportunity [so that] instead of going to high school, I could’ve gone to Florida to a golf camp and do golf nonstop, every day, from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. She realized I would’ve burned out, and then I won’t have anything left. I won’t have social skills, I won’t have education. So it’s important for me to be in high school and just live life as a teenager.”

His biggest influence, he says, is his older sister Asel Tuleubayev.

“I was always trying to be the bigger sister and give him all sorts of advice,” Asel said. “Any kind of big questions he had, or whenever he wasn’t feeling happy, I would have these long talks with him. What I loved about him is that he would always listen to me as a big sister, and if he disagreed, we would go talk it out, and he would listen in the end. He always asked with a purpose to listen.”

Off the golf course, Daulet focuses on his personality and influence as a friendly and positive person.

“When I first met him, he was really polite,” his close friend and teammate Jin Kim (12) said. “Whenever he meets somebody new he’s really kind to them, really genuine. He’s really good with people in general.”

According to his other friend Victor Shin (12), Daulet’s mindset tends towards optimism.

“Even if there’s a huge event coming up for him, whether it’s a big golf tournament, or there’s a big test coming up, he’s always really positive,” Victor said. “Whether a bad thing happens or a good thing happens, he’s really down to earth, and he’s really somebody that you enjoy being around because of his personality.”

Instead of wishing to be known for his capability in golf, Daulet wants the people he’s met to remember him for something else.

“I personally try to separate golf from me, because I know at times I think to myself, ‘If you take away golf from me, what do I have left?’” he said. “So the one thing I do want to be remembered for is just that I was a good guy and a good friend, and I’d always be nice to you, hear you out, and support you. At the end of the day, despite what I’ve achieved or what anyone else has achieved, I just want to be remembered as a good friend. Not just in high school, but even in life. I wouldn’t mind if I’m not remembered just as a golfer but a friendly and nice person.”