Philip Golding says it will be a privilege to tee off as defending champion when he gets his Travis Perkins Masters campaign under way tomorrow.

The Bushey golfer is set to start the defence of the Staysure Tour title he won in dramatic fashion at Woburn 12 months ago at 10.25am and the 56-year-old was excited about the prospect when he spoke to the Watford Observer earlier this week.

He said: “It’s always a privilege, isn’t it. Any time you win it’s fantastic, and any time you go and defend is always a privilege so it’s a good defence, it’s a good course with a great atmosphere.

“Travis Perkins, being the title sponsors, have put in a lot of support over the years, and it’s exciting to go into a tournament knowing your name is up there and we’ll see what happens over the three days.”

Golding won last year’s title having been seven shots behind with 11 holes to play and he heads to the Buckinghamshire course in good form after finishing tied fourth at last week’s Willow Senior Golf Classic at Hanbury Manor, having won his fifth Staysure title at the PGA Seniors Championship in August.

In between tournaments though, he finished in a share of 29th at the Russian Open Golf Championship after contracting food poisoning.

Admitting he still wasn’t 100 per cent, but felt “much, much better”, he added: “Fourth at the weekend going into Woburn this week, it’s always nice to perform well going into a tournament like this that I’m defending from the previous year.”

Having finished fourth on the Staysure Tour Order of Merit in 2017, Golding is having another good year and is currently ranked 11th. Positive results, of course, help but it’s the desire to compete that remains the 2003 French Open champion’s primary motivation.

“Just because your turn from 49 into 50, you don’t lose your competitive edge,” he explained. “I remember talking to [Colin] Montgomerie years ago and he said he would never play senior golf. Of course now he loves it.

“That competitive edge doesn’t just go overnight – it’s still there, it’s still burning – and the day it stops is the day to stop playing.

“Whether it is in your fifties or your thirties, you still like to compete against the best players of Europe at that time. It’s a good atmosphere, the players are all upbeat and it’s exciting for all the players.

“You don’t lose your competitive edge, that’s what keeps you driven, the drive to hit balls at practice and try intravenously to get better each time.”