Claire Wood only took up golf because she didn’t want to sit at home on her own.

Her husband Richard started playing some 16 years ago but it was only when their son Ryan started swinging a club three-and-a-half years ago that she realised how empty the house had become.

“I was fed up of being on my own so I thought I’d join them,” laughed Claire. “That was three years ago.”

Now all three of them are regulars on the greens and fairways at Sherdons Golf Club, where they are members, with 15-year-old Ryan, a pupil at Pittville School, having really taken to the sport.

Claire is not doing badly herself. She plays off 26 and that’s pretty good when you consider that she was forced to take a couple of breaks from the game which amounted to the best part of a year.

“I broke my wrist soon after I started playing,” said Claire. “I fell down a step coming out of a shop and it stopped me playing for seven months. I needed an operation on it the following year and that kept me out for another four months.”

Happily, no further misfortune has befallen Claire, who, although she plays golf for fun, would love to reduce her handicap.

She’s not far behind Richard, who plays off 22, but catching Ryan may be out of the question as he has a handicap of 18.

Ryan is also a keen rugby player – he used to be part of the flourishing youth set-up at Cheltenham North and played in the second row or back row – but is taking time out this year to concentrate on his studies as he takes his GCSE exams next summer.

However, he is still playing golf and is showing some real talent.

“He wants to go as far as he can in the sport,” says Claire. “The golf professional at Sherdons, Richard Ballard, and all the staff have been really supportive. He’s up there pretty much every day in the holidays.

“The members have been great too. He always finds someone to play with. From a parents’ point of view it’s a safe environment and he’s always well looked after. He’s always made to feel welcome.”

It’s not just at Sherdons that Ryan plays these days.

“He competes in quite a lot of Junior Opens, going as far as Devon and Herefordshire,” said his proud mum.

So, who wins when Ryan lines up on the tee against mum and dad?

“Usually Ryan, but not always,” laughs Claire.

“He’s a big hitter whereas my short game is my strength, particularly my putting. He can hit it 100 yards further than me off the tee but I just play my own game.”

Like so many golfers who came into the sport late, Claire wishes she had started playing the game at a much younger age.

Originally from Wales, she played badminton and did trampolining when she was younger. And being from the other side of the Severn Bridge she loves her rugby of course.

One thing she is grateful for is that of all the sports her husband could have chosen to pursue at the start of the millennium, it was golf that took his fancy.

“If he’d have gone fishing I’d never have taken that up,” she laughed. “Nor cricket, I can’t stand cricket either!”