First impressions
“It was really windy and tough. We played in late September and the course was exceptionally difficult as most links courses are in the wind. I was still pretty inexperienced. I had gone from boys’ golf straight into men’s golf – I certainly wasn’t first pick in the team. I had done well to get there and it was a great experience.”

The course
“When Tiger won in 2006, the course was baked, burnt and running. When I played in the Amateur, the rough was about a foot deep and lush. It was quite breezy, but my ball wasn’t running a hundred yards. Tiger didn’t use a driver. I remember hitting a driver and then a 2-iron to 15 in the final. It was a different course.”

The key shots
“Tee shots are key. There are a lot of holes where choosing the wrong club, or getting a slightly wrong line, means the traps are in such good places that your ball will run into one. Also, if you try and cut a corner and not quite carry it, you’ll be in trouble. You have to be quite particular about where you hit your ball off the tee.”