From mad keen to hardly playing at all

LOST TO THE GAME NAME: FRANK O’DONNELL AGE: 47 JOB: JOURNALIST

I was once a very keen golfer and through my teens I was a member of three clubs in Edinburgh: Duddingston, the Merchants and Edinburgh Thistle at the Braids. I would often play five or six days a week and some days 36 holes or more. But over the last ten years I’ve played very little and my last round was back in July 2016.

I’m not alone. Of the others in my social group, few now play regularly – families and life have taken precedence. When there’s a group dynamic, you get other people pushing you to play but, when people start dropping out of the group, that changes.

From my perspective, I also think golf could be more welcoming to newcomers. When I was growing up, juniors were tolerated rather than encouraged.

I also remember when I recently moved house I telephoned my local course. The secretary wasn’t friendly and asked if I had a member to propose