Nathan Smith thought his time for earning a spot on the U.S. Walker Cup team had passed. It had been several years since his graduation from college. He was married and had a good job at a Pittsburgh financial firm, so he felt a need to focus on other things besides golf.

Until . . .

"I was sitting on the couch watching the 2007 team play overseas," Smith said yesterday at Merion Golf Club. "It really kind of choked me up, and I started to get teary-eyed. I had played so much golf with those guys.

"Then I saw that the '09 [Walker Cup] was here, and I just thought, 'I've got to be part of this, at least give it one more shot.' As you get older, the window keeps disappearing. It was a big commitment. Everybody at my work was great. My wife was great. I've had a lot of special people around me that have been supportive and have allowed me to kind of chase this down."

Thanks to superlative play on the summer amateur circuit, the 31-year-old Smith became the oldest player to make the U.S. Walker Cup team. Yesterday, the squad played a practice round at Merion in one group of 10, preparing for tomorrow's start of competition against Great Britain and Ireland.

Smith described the last month as "surreal."

Team captain Buddy Marucci notified him Aug. 8 of his selection. The first eight U.S. picks arrived at Merion a couple of days later.

"It's a four-hour drive [from his Pittsburgh home], and I probably did it in two," Smith said.

"Any time you have a chance to represent your country, it's special. The 10 guys on the team are great players, but they're better people than they are players, and that's saying a lot."

Smith's selection culminated a grueling summer when he traveled far and wide to compete. He said he had no idea how many miles he put on his car, but noted, "I need a new one."

Before it all started, he had to present his summer-of-golf idea to his wife, Nicole. He admitted to some trepidation as he began his pitch.

"But she was great about it," he said. "I can't really describe how supportive she has been, because that's not easy to do. It's been great. I'm sure I'll have a long winter of chores, whatever she wants me to do. So I'm getting ready for that."

In the major amateur tournaments, Smith finished tied for fourth in the Sunnehanna, tied for seventh in both the Northeast and Southern, and tied for 13th in the Porter Cup. He won the Pennsylvania Amateur at Waynesborough and advanced to match play in the Western Amateur and U.S. Amateur.

Smith said he did not concern himself with how close, or how far, he might have been from a slot on the team.

"In my heart, I wanted to just give it one last shot," said Smith, the 2003 U.S. Mid-Amateur champion. "If going out and finishing 20th every week was the best I had, then that's the best I had. I was like, 'I'm going to finish this thing, one foot in front of the other, all summer.' "

Smith, a graduate of Allegheny College, said he fits in with his younger teammates, all of whom played college golf this past year. He called Marucci a great captain who gives his team an advantage with his knowledge of Merion, where he is a member.

"It's a major championship course," Smith said. "I think it's going to be a great host for the Walker Cup. There are little delicacies to it. The rough is deep, the greens are undulating."

The Walker Cup is the fulfillment of a lifelong goal for Smith, and he plans to fully enjoy the experience.

"It's a thrill I don't think I've ever had," he said. "I'm still trying to get my arms around it."

Contact staff writer Joe Juliano at 215-854-4494

or jjuliano@phillynews.com.