See Lee Westwood as he shot eight under par after nine holes of a Hartlepool golf course

He shot eight under par in just nine holes of the Seaton Carew golf course – while the Ryder Cup hero also left a lasting impression on club officials for being ‘an absolute gentleman’ and indicating he could return to try one of the club’s other courses.

The 47-year-old played with his son and two ex-European Tour players Simon Hurd and Stuart Cage. He birdied all except one hole – the par 3 third – in the first nine and returned with a -8 at the end of the 18 holes on his first ever visit to Seaton Carew.

Club captain Norman Bagley praised Lee and added: “He was so complimentary about the course and can’t wait to come back. I asked him if he would come back and play the Brabazon course.”

Norman told how he caught up with Lee on the 15th hole. After Lee’s storming first nine, he parred the rest of the round.

“Coming back, the finish at Seaton Carew is renowned for being tough. I saw Lee on the 15th and he said ‘this is some stretch of finishing holes’.”

Norman also praised the club’s new greenkeeper Tom Coulson for ‘making a big difference to the course in such a short space of time. He and the team have gelled together’.

Seaton Carew Golf Club has around 630 members and can welcome more, although Norman admitted “There has been a big influx in the last two to three months.”

And Lee is not the first well known name to try out the Seaton course. Justin Rose is a previous visitor.

Seaton Carew has held golf games since 1874 which is thought to make it the tenth oldest golf club in England.

Club pro Cliff Jackson said: “To get Lee here was probably the biggest name we have had to date. It puts us in a slightly different light.

“As a result of Lee coming here and Seaton Carew becoming known to golfers, they are going to think ‘we need to go there and play that course’.”

He said Lee had made everyone feel at ease by calling in at the golf shop for a hot chocolate and a coffee.

Cliff added: “He finished the course on 64. He loved it and he loved the hospitality that we put on for him.”

Lee is a former world number one golfer. He was also player of the year for the 1998, 2000 and 2009 seasons.

He represented Europe in ten Ryder Cups and in October 2010, he took over the position as the top golfer in the world from Tiger Woods.

He was the first British golfer to hold the position since Nick Faldo around 16 years earlier.

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