Todd Burgan (USGA Photo)

Having never laid eyes on The Honors Course, the site of this week’s 69th U.S. Senior Amateur, David Tassell had no idea what to expect. He had heard the rumors of how challenging the Pete Dye layout could be, so he needed to find someone to help him decode the mystery of solving the storied design.

After all, this was Tassell’s first venture in a USGA event, having failed to qualify in numerous tries over the past dozen years. He even debated passing on this year’s tournament, but managed to qualify at Palm Beach Gardens near his home in Jupiter, Fla.

With his ticket punched to the tournament, Tassell contacted a friend of his who had built a home in Tennessee hoping to find someone to caddie for him. What he found in Braden Smyth was more than just a caddie. He discovered someone with years of experience to help him unlock the code of The Honors Course.

“A buddy of mine is a member of another club in the area,” Tassell said. “He knows Braden and tells him, ‘My buddy’s coming up to play in the Senior Am. Will you caddie for him?’ He said yes, and that connection has made all the difference this week.”

Smyth, whose father was an original member of The Honors Course, spent parts of 16 years caddieing at the club in between gigs looping on the LPGA Tour and the Korn Ferry Tour. His knowledge of the subtleties of the diabolical greens has given Tassell a measure of confidence needed at just the right time.

That was on full display in Monday’s Round of 64 match where he was paired with two-time U.S. Senior Amateur Champion Paul Simson of Raleigh, N.C. Relying upon Smyth’s savvy ability to accurately read the break, Tassell drained a 30-foot putt on the 18th hole to win 1 up, giving Simson his only loss in a match play opener.

“I had bogeyed 18 both days, and I was determined not to bogey again,” Tassell said. “I hit a 7-iron to about 30 feet above the hole, then made the putt. I’m glad the hole got in the way. I couldn’t believe it went in. I hadn’t made a putt that length the whole tournament.

“That’s the kind of thing that usually happens against me in match play, but it felt good to be on the other side for a change.”

It has been a dizzying experience for Tassell, 67, whose day started with having to earn his way into match play in a 9-for-8 playoff.

“I’m just playing with house money right now, because making the match play was my goal,” Tassell said. “I played the first two rounds with last year’s champion (Todd White), and today I’ve got amateur golf royalty in my first match. It’s very surreal, but I’m having a great time.”

After growing up in Doylestown, Pa., Tassell tried to play collegiate golf at Wake Forest his freshman year. But the experience gave him a dose of reality, leading him to believe that a career as an attorney would be the wiser choice.

“I tried to walk on at Wake Forest, but they had Curtis Strange, Jay Haas, Soctt Hoch and Gary Hallberg,” Tassell said. “I played nine holes with Curtis Strange and recognized that was the end of my Wake Forest golf career.”

Tassell walked away from golf for a number of years while building his law practice and raising a family with three children. But he started competing again 20 years ago, and has been active at his club, Turtle Creek Club in Tequesta, playing in local events.

“I like the rush of being in a tournament, and I like having a to post a score,” Tassell said. “I just love the competition. I'm on the board of the Palm Beach County Golf Association, and we have phenomenal golf tournaments and great players, so you can really get good competitive experience.”

Tassell will face Dan Sullivan of Pasadena, Calif. on Wednesday in his Round of 32 match. Sullivan is another first-timer who enjoyed success in Monday’s opening match play encounter along with England’s Stephen Creed and Knoxville’s Todd Burgan.

Sullivan overcame an early 2-down deficit to eliminate Philip Josephson of Miami, winning five straight holes starting at No. 8 to claim a 5 and 4 victory.

Having played in 12 previous USGA championships, competing at this level is nothing new. His first was the 2005 U.S. Mid-Amateur at The Honors – his first of nine Mid-Am appearances – which was Sullivan’s first exposure to the golf course.

He was also a periodic attendee of the John T. Lupton Memorial staged at The Honors each year, as his life has taken a different path than many of his fellow senior golfers.

“I didn’t get married until I was 45, so I was playing all kinds of golf leading up to that,” Sullivan said. “I still play a decent amount, and my wife is very supportive. Knowing that this tournament was here this year gave me a little more incentive to come to this year’s Lupton.”

Sullivan placed second in the Lupton event in May, giving him a boost of confidence leading into this week.

“I don't know that you can ever be comfortable on this golf course, but I do think that playing here as often as I have is a huge advantage. The more that I played here, the more comfortable I get, the narrower my focus has gotten. It's the first USGA event I’ve played at a course where I have this much experience, and to come in here and not feel like I have to try to cram two days’ worth of knowledge of a course is a big advantage.”

With a 10-year-old son and daughter who is seven, Sullivan is glad to put the golf clubs aside in exchange for this later foray into parenthood.

“My son plays every sport you can think of so that keeps me busy,” Sullivan said. “I can't practice as much as I used to, but it probably has given me a little more perspective. He wants me to pitch to him. He wants me to shoot baskets with him. Honestly, as a parent, that's something I'd much rather spend more time doing. It’s all worth it.”

Burgan, who turned 55 in April, must be wondering what happened to any home field advantage he might be able to leverage being the last of three Tennessee natives remaining in the tournament.

After the State Amateur was conducted on the opposite end of the state last week leading into the U.S. Senior Amateur, he arrived at The Honors Course with limited prep time and was awarded the opening tee time in Saturday’s stroke play.

He then drew 2023 runner-up Jody Fanagan of Ireland as his Round of 64 opponent. His reward for disposing of Fanagan, 5 and 4? Burgan now must face defending champion Todd White of Spartanburg, S.C. in his Round of 32 match on Tuesday.

“Sometimes you get a draw that's not as challenging, and then sometimes you get just a brutal one. But you still have to play them one at a time,” Burgan said.

Burgan was 4-up after five holes against Fanagan, and he never let his advantage shrink to less than 3-up as he coasted to the victory.

“I knew he was going to be a good player and he probably wouldn’t give away any holes,” Burgan said. “If anything, I think that made me focus a little more knowing he was runner-up last year. But I’m sure if they were putting a line on it, I’d have been plus money.”

With White looming next, Burgan is hoping to make a similar surge as he did in the 2010 U.S. Mid-Amateur Championship at Atlantic Golf Club when he advanced to the semifinals.

“When I made my run up at Long Island, I beat Tim Jackson and Tim Mickelson on the same day. That was pretty cool. I’m hoping I can do something similar here at a course I’m very familiar with,” Burgan said.

Creed’s ability to win his opening match, 5 and 3, over Kurt Reither of Bentonville, Ark. can be traced back to Sunday’s final round of stroke play.

The Stratford-on-Avon Golf Club member had posted a 44 on his front nine, and Creed was flirting with missing the cutline when he was given a firm admonition from his caddie, Josh Davenport.

“Josh is a fantastic caddie, but I was relying upon him too much,” Creed said. “I hadn't gone through the process internally that I would normally go through. So, on the back nine, he said, ‘I'm stepping away. You take control. If you want a yardage or a club, I'll give you it. But you're now taking control because you need to get your game back.’”

Sorting through emotions of vulnerability and frustration, Creed was taken aback by Davenport’s words.

“I could have screamed and shouted at him because I felt like he had abandoned me,” Creed said. “But that was tough love that a caddy needs to do, and that could only come from a player who understands.”

Creed was able to right the ship to make it into match play, going 4-up through eight holes in his Round of 64 match while shooting 2-under over that span. Suddenly, the confidence he’d been missing had returned.

“I got in by the skin of my teeth, and I’m thinking, ‘OK, you've got a second breath of wind now. Reset and perform,’” Creed said. “I can go home from here with my head held up high, no matter what happens tomorrow morning. But I'll have that same fighting spirit that I've had today knowing what I am capable of.”

Paul Payne can be emailed at paulpayne6249@gmail.com