The 54-year-old former golfer won the national Boys title when he was just 16 years old and regrets waiting until he was 21 before he started taking part in major tournaments as he thinks his game had already peaked by then.

He told Today’s Golfer magazine: “I played in the 1991 Walker Cup but I’m not sure it was the right decision.

“If I had my career again, I might not wait to turn pro. I was playing better before those matches and I think it’s crucial to turn pro when your game is at its peak – mine had plateaued by then.

“I won two matches in a 14-10 defeat for Great Britain and Ireland, but lost the third =a 4+3 defeat to Phil Mickelson in the singles.”

The pundit was a member of the 1999 European Ryder Cup team and while he enjoyed the experience, he admitted he began focusing on the wrong things as a result.

He said: “After that Ryder Cup, my goals definitely changed.

“Because I was a pick for that Ryder cup, I was desperate to prove the pick was justified.

“I started concentrating on a Ryder Cup two years out. That was wrong; I should just have kept doing what I had been doing.

“And I started working on the wrong things, trying to perfect the swing. Insanity. I should have focused on the other ingredients that make you a good player.”