So often you hear about how the pressure of captaincy affects a player’s form.

That is certainly not the case with Neil Smith, however, who took over as captain at Tewkesbury Park Golf Club at the start of the year.

The 45-year-old was playing off 11 when he spoke to The Local Answer and said: “It will come down. I want to be in single figures – I’m a single figure handicapper waiting to happen!

“It’s already come down a shot since the start of the year and my ambition is to be a 5, 6 or 7-handicapper.”

Smith has only really been playing golf for the past seven years or so, starting with Sherdons before switching to Tewkesbury, so he has come a long way in a short time.

The Churchdown School teacher, who lives just a long Rory McIlroy drive from the golf course that has become his second home, played football, rugby and cricket in his younger days.

“I didn’t play to any great standard,” he said, “but I always enjoyed playing wherever I was and I always enjoyed the social side. I’d have kept on playing but I didn’t want knackered knees!”

These he says golf is “by far” the number one sport in his life.

It was the social aspect that attracted him to Tewkesbury Park, however.

“I got invited along to one of their club nights,” he said. “I walked into the bar and after 10 minutes I felt like I knew half the people there. It was a really good atmosphere. I thought, ‘I’ll fit in well here’.”

The affable Smith was soon enjoying himself on the course as well as in the bar. He was captain of the club’s North Gloucestershire Foursomes League B team three years ago and is proud of a record that reads a bit like Nick Faldo’s Ryder Cup singles record – won 6, drawn 1, lost 2.

These days he organises the club’s friendly matches against the likes of Forest of Arden, Weston-Super-Mare, Lydney and St Pierre so his time is pretty full-on at the club.

So, is he enjoying the captaincy?

“Yes, I am,” he said. “Of course it can have its moments but it’s a great honour. I like talking to other people whether it be golfers from our club or players from other clubs. I suppose you could call me a social butterfly.”

He receives plenty of feedback, of course, and nearly all of it is good, especially when it comes to the course.

No less an expert than Peter McEvoy, one of this country’s best ever amateur golfers, has had an input on the shape of the course over the years and Smith is fulsome in his praise for the set-up and owners’ massive investment in the course and hotel.

“The course looks absolutely fantastic,” Smith said, “it’s truly awesome. The greens are so true and the fairways are very well manicured. The groundsman Chris Bromley has done a wonderful job.”

So how long will it be before a Smith junior rocks up at the club?

“Not for a while,” laughed Smith, who is married to Rebecca. “My eight-year-old son Sam has started swinging a club in the garden but he’s far more interested in football.

“And my daughter Robyn, who is 10, is obsessed with dancing – contemporary, modern, tap, ballet.”

So, what about Rebecca?

“We played a couple of rounds together when we first met but she doesn’t play now,” he chuckled. “I think she tolerated it but in fact she was a better player than me. She’d probably be better than me now if she’d stuck at it!”