Mike Van Sickle and his dad, Gary, who is also a solid player in his own right, survey a putt Tuesday. (John Mummert/USGA)

By Dave Shedloski

Village of Pinehurst, N.C. – Father-son tandems are far from a novelty in golf, but Gary and Mike Van Sickle can lay claim to a special niche worth writing about.

It might be more appropriate for Gary to undertake reporting duties here, being one of the world’s best and most decorated golf writers as well as a fine player in his own right. But writing wasn’t on Van Sickle’s agenda; he was busy at this week’s 108^th U.S. Amateur serving as caddie for his son, one of America’s top amateur golfers.

The experience was rewarding for the two men, even if it didn’t result in the desired outcome. Undone by a mid-round triple-bogey Mike, an honorable mention PING All-American, shot a 3-over-par 73 Tuesday at Pinehurst Resort’s No. 2 Course and likely will fall short of advancing to match play for the top 64 scorers.

The younger Van Sickle completed 36 holes in 6-over 146 in his first appearance in the national amateur. He was disappointed, but he couldn’t say that he didn’t enjoy a stellar run prior to his arrival at Pinehurst.

Van Sickle, ranked 14^th in the Golfweek Scratch Players World Amateur Rankings – and sixth among Americans – won both the Pennsylvania Open and the Pennsylvania Amateur, making him just the second man to turn the double in one year, joining Jay Sigel, who won back-to-back U.S. Amateur crowns in 1982-83. A resident of Wexford, Pa., Van Sickle also became the first amateur to win consecutive state open titles and just the third to successfully defend.

He wasn’t shabby on the national stage, either. Van Sickle birdied the final hole at the Southern Amateur at Lake Nona Country Club in Orlando to force a playoff before losing on the first extra hole to 2007 Walker Cupper Kyle Stanley of Gig Harbor, Wash. He also finished third at the Porter Cup at Niagara Falls Country Club.

"I was fighting my swing a little bit," said Mike, 21, who enters his senior year at Marquette University. "I guess I ran out of gas."

"He was like Kenny Perry at the tail end of his hot streak," said Gary, 54, who for nearly 12 years has been a senior writer covering the PGA Tour for Sports Illustrated. "He played real well for a month or two, but it ended sort of as the Amateur began. Just no way to explain that."

Explaining their relationship on the golf course is easier. Dad doesn’t try to do too much and son doesn’t expect too much.

"He does a good job raking bunkers," Mike said jokingly of his father, who in 1996 advanced to sectional qualifying for the U.S. Open. "Basically, he knows what I want out of a caddie. He lets me just go play. He’s great to have around."

Countered Gary: "He reads greens better than I do, so I’m probably one notch above bag carrier. If I do anything well, it’s keeping the grooves clean. Other than that, I guess my main job is just to try to keep him loose."

One of those ways is through a running gag. Gary, instead of handing the putter to his son when they reach a green, sometimes offers him the putter cover instead. The joke here is that when Gary first started to caddie for his son, he’d absent-mindedly make that mistake because he was so used to being a competitor himself.

And while he thoroughly enjoys helping his son, the elder Van Sickle doesn’t automatically pick up the bag. "Our plan is if we go to a course we don’t know very well, we’d rather hire someone who does know it, who can save us a shot or two. We’re looking for an edge."

In addition to competing in his first U.S. Amateur, Mike had a chance to enjoy an early golf memory with his father.

His first competitive experience was at the 1995 Donald Ross Invitational, where he shot 130 on the No. 1 Course in the first round and improved to 105 in the second. The following year, at age 10, he broke 100 for the first time ever playing the No. 4 Course at the Donald Ross Father-Son Tournament.

The Van Sickles tied for first but lost the playoff.

"That was fun just thinking about all that," Gary said with a deserved air of pride. "He’s gotten a little bit better since then."

Added Mike, who was heading back to college next week: "We’d like to be able to stick around, but we had a few too many mistakes. But it was a great experience."

Dave Shedloski is a freelance writer whose work has previously appeared on www.usamateur.org.