What Happened
Since arriving at The Honors Course for the 69th U.S. Senior Amateur, some 50 competitors have approached Paul Simson to tell the decorated North Carolinian on how thrilled they were that the USGA gave him a special exemption into the championship.
That decision is looking mighty apropos after what the 73-year-old from Raleigh produced on a gorgeous late-August Saturday in southern Tennessee. The two-time U.S. Senior Amateur champion (2010 and 2012) – and 2017 runner-up – bettered his age by three strokes on the challenging 6,876-yard, par-72 Pete Dye design to share the first-round lead.
Despite a pair of late bogeys, Ron Ewing, 56, of Merced, Calif., competing in his first USGA championship in 16 years, matched Simson’s 2-under-par 70.
No other competitors managed to break par in Round 1, where the scoring average was 76.2, even though there was virtually no wind and temperatures were in the high 80s and low 90s.
Doug Hanzel, of Savannah, Ga., the 2013 champion, 2019 runner-up Roger Newsom, of Virginia Beach, Va., and John Kemp, of England, all posted even-par 72s.
The group at 1-over 73 included past runners-up Matt Sughrue (2016), of Arlington, Va., and Jerry Gunthorpe (2021), of Ovid, Mich., 1996 U.S. Amateur Public Links champion Tim Hogarth, of Northridge, Calif., 2023 R&A Senior Amateur champion Brent Paterson, of New Zealand, and Tennessean Steven Mann, of Franklin, who tied for third in this past week’s Tennessee Senior Amateur.
Defending champion Todd White, 56, of Spartanburg, S.C., opened with a 5-over 77.
Simson, the oldest player in the field, has made no bones about The Honors Course being his favorite venue, and the owner of a record 45 Carolinas Golf Association titles has competed all over the planet, and he is one of three players to have captured the U.S. Senior Amateur, R&A Senior Amateur and Canadian Men’s Senior Amateur. His match-play record in 16 U.S. Senior Amateur starts is a remarkable 36-12, including 14-for-14 in Round-of-64 encounters.
“It was very kind of them,” said Simson of the special exemption. “That makes you feel really good [when fellow competitors offer congratulations]. There are no assurances that you are going to get one, so I am very appreciative.”
Validating that decision with a 70 on an incredibly difficult layout was extra satisfying, especially after what he called a “very poor” practice round on Friday. But having played The Honors Course “about 100 times” – 1991 U.S. Amateur and the annual Jack Lupton Invitational some 20 times – Simson knows this venue as well as any. His son/caddie, Phillip, just marveled how his father strategically maneuvered his way around the layout. His round included three birdies in a four-hole stretch from No. 7. He had one birdie and one bogey on the inward nine.
“When you play poorly in a practice round, all of a sudden it gives you a kick in the pants and you pay a little more attention the next day,” said Simson, competing in his 59th USGA championship, second most in the field behind Mike McCoy’s 61. “I just love the layout. It’s always in good shape. Everything is so well done here. It’s not ostentatious. You don’t feel like you are walking on eggshells. It’s a very comfortable place.
“Look out there (pointing to the view from behind the 18th green). How serene is that? The people are great. They have been here forever. And [founder] Jack Lupton just had a wonderful vision when he did this, and he made sure it continued after he was gone.”
Ewing, a former professional who rose as high as the Nike/Nationwide Tour, has had to reacquaint himself with the USGA this week, having not competed since being bounced from the 2008 U.S. Mid-Amateur in the opening round of match play. That came a year after the Fresno State graduate was reinstated as an amateur and took a job in wealth management.
On Saturday, Ewing was the only player to reach 4 under par before two late bogeys on Nos. 17 and 18 pushed him into a tie with Simson. Nevertheless, he did make four consecutive birdies from No. 9. He also opened the day by sending his wedge approach at the par-4 first to tap-in range. Then he began the second nine in similar fashion as he nearly holed out his second on No. 10.
“I hope I can duplicate that [the rest of the week],” said Ewing. “Played smart. I had to lay up a few times today [from bad drives] and tried to play smart. It paid off a couple of times, it didn’t pay off a couple of times. I was really ready for the tournament, but as always, you’re very nervous.”
A year ago, Jody Fanagan, of the Republic of Ireland, became the first international player to make a U.S. Senior Amateur final. In fact, this is the only USGA championship without a foreign champion. Kemp, 56, could change that by Thursday. In 2023, he made his U.S. Senior Amateur debut at Martis Camp, advancing to match play and losing in the Round of 32.
