I stood on the 163 yards, 18th tee at Mardyke Valley Golf Club, Essex, at the end of a rather frustrating round, when are they not? I hit a clunky 8 iron but was happy that my intended draw was bringing the ball to target. I was also relieved that it cleared the bunker, which runs across the front of the green, obscuring the hole. One of my playing partners was convinced that he'd over-hit his shot and so I was disappointed that, when I walked onto the green, there was only one ball, 30 feet from the pin. It was only when I understood that it was my partners ball, that I hoped for an ace. There was lots of laughs, pats on my back and many handshakes when we all looked into the cup. A very special end to my round.