Blythewood, SC – Brandon Smith of West Palm Beach, FL isn’t exactly your prototypical mini-tour player, having left the rigors of the working world to chase his lifelong dream of the PGA TOUR – all while selling a family company to help make it happen. On Wednesday morning at the ninth annual Columbia Open, Smith was less concerned with TPS reports and more concerned with the color red, riding a six-birdie stretch at the midway point of his opening round on his way to a 6-under 65, good for a share of the day one lead heading into Thursday’s second round.

Smith, 31, opened his week on the back nine of the Ellis Maples-designed Columbia Country Club course, posting a birdie on the par-4 13th to quickly move to 1-under, where he turned after closing with pars on Nos. 14 through 18.

“I kind of scraped it around the front nine, made a bunch of putts and had some par saves just to turn at 1-under,” he said.

On his back nine, the club’s “Ridge” nine, Smith went into video game mode, ripping off six consecutive birdies to ascend to 7-under par through 15 holes on the day.

Back-to-back approach shots to 4 feet gave way to birdies on Nos. 1 and 2, while a holed bunker shot at the 500-yard par-4 third put forth birdie number three on the streak.

At the par-4 fourth, Smith holed a curling 12-footer for birdie, then validated it with birdies on Nos. 5 and 6 from 25 feet and 20 feet, respectively.

Ironically, his torrid tear ended at the docile par-5 seventh, when spitting rain and wind made club selection more difficult than earlier in the day.

Ryan Sullivan

“It started raining there at seven, and the wind really came up as well, spinning my third shot towards the front of the green,” he said. “It stayed that way on Nos. 8 and 9, so I was happy to get out of there with pars.”

The 6-under-par effort in the morning wave put Smith in a tie for the overnight lead with Ryan Sullivan of Winston-Salem, NC, who matched his 65 in Wednesday’s afternoon wave.

The week marks Smith’s first start on the eGolf Tour since posting a T16 finish at the River Run Classic last August. In 14 prior starts between 2010 and 2012, he notched two top-10s in back-to-back fashion at the Southern Open (8th) and the River Landing Open (9th) – both in 2012.

Smith’s spotty attendance record over the years is not without cause, as time spent running a family insurance company made golf more of a luxury than a profession.

“My dad bought an insurance agency 10 years ago, and then retired shortly thereafter,” said Smith after his round. “I ran it for several years then turned pro in 2010, kind of stepping away from the everyday business side of things. I still did the bookkeeping, but with the market not real good I felt it was time to do something.”

Just a week ago, Smith sold the agency, which specialized in property and casualty insurance. Playing in small events in his native South Florida helped keep him sharp during the sale, which lifted a burden off his shoulders once complete.

“It’s interesting because I did well financially in my early-to-mid-20s, and now just last weekend I stayed in a $42 per night hotel room,” joked Smith of the nomadic life of mini-tour players. “It’s a different deal, but this is what I want to do.”

Will Collins

In an industry saturated with players fresh out of college who would do nearly anything to avoid life behind a desk, Smith sticks out like a 31-year-old ex-insurance agent would.

Could his inherent respect for the working world and knowledge of cubicle discomfort work to his advantage while on the golf course? Almost certainly.

“In a lot of ways I realize it’s not life and death,” said Smith of his tournament rounds. “The patience aspect of it is different at 31 than when I first turned pro. I’m better, my swing is better, but the mental aspect of things is what has made me a better player now versus then.”

At his home club – Mayacoo Lakes in West Palm Beach – Smith was approached by a group of members who wanted to financially help his transition from the office to the driving range, and help “free him up mentally.” That security blanket, so to speak, has allowed him to put forth a schedule whereby he’ll compete on the eGolf Tour and on various mini-tours in South Florida.

“I just want to play as much as I can to get ready for European and Web.com Tour Q-School this fall,” he said. “I’m just trying to prepare as best I can, so this is a good start.”

Sullivan, a member of the Web.com Tour this year, recorded eight birdies in the first round to catch Smith atop the leaderboard with a 65 of his own late in the day.

The former UNC Wilmington star has made three starts this year on the PGA TOUR’s developmental circuit, posting a season-best 76th-place finish at the Brasil Champions last month.

The 24-year-old broke through late in 2013, winning PGA TOUR Latinoamerica’s Puerto Rico Classic and the event’s $27,000 first-place prize – the first win of his professional career. Sullivan recorded four top-10s during a solid campaign on the eGolf Tour last year, including a career-best-tying T3 at the Championship at St. James Plantation.

Will Collins of Salisbury, NC, Phillip Mollica of Anderson, SC, Abbie Valentine of Naples, FL and Jimmy Lytle of Ocean Ridge, FL are tied for third, two shots back of the co-leaders after matching rounds of 4-under 67.

Collins, a former star at the University of Virginia, bogeyed his first hole of the day on Wednesday, then birdied five of his next 14 holes to reach 4-under par, where he eventually finished after closing with pars on his final three holes.

Phillip Mollica

The 25-year-old opened his 2014 eGolf Tour campaign with four top-25s in his first five starts, including top-10s at the Palmetto Hall Championship (T8) and NorthStone Open (T7). Collins, who won the tour’s Salisbury (NC) Classic last fall on his home course (Country Club of Salisbury), missed the cut at the 2013 Columbia Open, but posted a T9 later in the year at the Columbia Classic – held on the same Columbia Country Club course.

That T9 sparked a torrid finish to the year for Collins, giving way to the win at Salisbury and a T2 the next week at the NorthStone Open.

Mollica, a member of the eGolf Tour from 2010 through 2012, was making his first start of the year on Wednesday, posting five birdies and one bogey for his opening 67.

The former Clemson standout had Web.com Tour status in 2013, but missed 11 of 13 cuts while adding one top-25 in three starts on the eGolf Tour.

In 2011, the soft-spoken lefty broke through for the biggest win of his career, claiming the tour’s El Jadida Classic title in Morocco – the second of two back-to-back events conducted by the eGolf Tour in the North African country.

Second-round play in the Columbia Open will begin at 8:00 AM on Thursday morning. Following the completion of 36 holes, the field will be cut to the low 35 percent and ties for the final two rounds of play. The tournament is open to the public and free of charge.