Male, excessively enthusiastic, took first place in patchy style (7)
I believe the answer is:
mottled
'in patchy style' is the definition.
(mottled means marked with spots or patches)
'male excessively enthusiastic took first place' is the wordplay.
'male' becomes 'm' (common abbreviation).
'excessively enthusiastic' becomes 'OTT' (short for over the top).
'took first place' becomes 'led' (as in taking the lead in a race).
'm'+'ott'+'led'='MOTTLED'
(Other definitions for mottled that I've seen before include "Marked with spots" , "Marked with irregular patches of colour" , "Having blotches of colour" , "Marked with streaks or blotches" , "Blotched" .)