IT IS OFTEN said that all good things must come to an end.
You cannot stay on a high forever, an adage that is only too true when it comes to my golf game.
For the second year in a row, I started 2015 playing really quite well. Just two months in, I had built up a healthy 4-0 lead in my annual battle with my brother-in-law, Steve, and was generally excited about what the summer months might have to offer.
My fine form continued into March. I played some really solid stuff on the way to an impressive (for me) round of 94 at Dummer, before recording my best-ever score at Weybrook Park, making just one double-bogey on the way to a personal-best round of 87.
I was due to play Steve again just two days later, and it's fair to say that I was confident of extending my advantage to 5-0.
How wrong I was.
The wind was howling as we took to the course and while my opening tee shot was a horrible slice, I recovered pretty well, playing solidly over the first seven holes.
The only real disappointment was a four-putt on the par-five sixth. Having covered the 480 yards from tee to green in three, it took me four to get down from about 50 feet and I had to settle for a double-bogey seven.
Things took a real turn for the worse in the middle of the round as I found the water on eight and then smashed one out of bounds at nine to reach the turn in 51, seven shots behind Steve.
I hacked around a bit on the back nine, but still had a chance of sneaking under 100 when we reached the 16th tee.
That opportunity soon moved away from me. I snapped hooked my drive left, with the ball going even further in that direction after an unfortunate ricochet off a tree.
A forest of thin-trunked trees lay between me and the fairway and I really should have taken my medicine and gone back to the tee.
Instead, I decided to try and clear the trees, but in my desperation to get the ball in the air, I leant back, thinning it into the woods.
From there, I spent several shots desperately trying to get through, with the ball coming back off trees and ending up behind me on a couple of occasions.
The result was a round-destroying 13, resulting in a total of 105. Sadly it was a sign of things to come.
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here