Surely there are already enough golf instruction books out there?

That's exactly what I was thinking when I met up with Steve and Dave during the first week of August  to discuss their ideas for the book. Thinking it, but not saying it.

I mean, they're the golf experts (they must boast almost a century of teaching between them at the Knightsbridge Golf School) and their publishers - Elliott & Thompson - are the publishing experts. Far be it for me to disagree. I write for a living, that's all - what do I know? I sat down, accepted the offer of tea and biscuits and kept politely - if somewhat sceptically - quiet.

Three hours later and I headed for home, excited, enthused and, to my surprise, utterly converted. Over the years I've read my fair share of golf book, from Harvey Penick's Little Red Book to Hogan's Five Lessons and reams of Leadbetter, but never, never, never had I been exposed to such a detailed, crystal-clear analysis of the golf swing during that first meeting. Clearly, these guys had something seriously important to say.

Much of that initial session was spent focusing on Steve and Dave's 'impact zone' and the way the hands release the golf club. What they were saying was completely new to me. I could not help thinking, on the train home, that if I went into my local golf club and asked a dozen of my friends to define hand release, they too would probably come up with a dozen answers. How mad is that? We play golf to a reasonable standard, but we don't really know what is going on as we approach the ball...

And another thought struck me. I had spent the previous eight months getting down from my 14 handicap to 12.4.  My monthly medal, a few days before, had seen me go round in 12 over par. I was pretty pleased with that. Surely, though, in writing this book, I would have the perfect opportunity to take my game to another level.

Perhaps, indeed, the receding pipe dream of a single handicap - I am, after all, fast approaching my 52nd birthday, I'm two stone overweight and burdened with an arthritic knee and ankle - might not be so ridiculoulsy optimistic after all.

A Single Handicap or Bust...

So here I am, giving single-handicap golf another go. I've tried to become a single handicap golfer before, of course.

Haven't we all?

My first big push came in 2006-7. I fooled my wife into thinking it was worth the effort by writing a book as I went along ('Hacked Off', Aurum Press). The result? 24 to 10.2 in a year. Missed by a whisker.

I've been semi-retired since, playing the odd game here and there while dreaming of what might have been on the range. Yet here I am, older and none the wiser, trying again. You'd think I'd know better.

So why throw good time after bad?

Well, it feels like unfinished business, doesn't it? At 10.2 it would, wouldn't it? Even at age 51 3/4, complete with knackered left ankle and clicking left knee.

The real reason, though, came a couple of months ago.

Out of the blue, a phone call. Would I like to help with  a golf instruction book for the legendary Steve Gould and Dave Wilkinson at London's Knightsbridge Golf School? A book entitled "Golf's Golden Rule"?

Would I heck! Here I am, being paid while simultaneously getting unparalleled access to two fine golfing brains! What more could a (former) 10.2 handicapper ask for? Surely, surely, surely - if I listen intently and ask the right questions - I will not only be able to help produce a good book, but will also learn more about the golf swing than I have ever known before? Their knowledge is bound to rub off on me... isn't it?