Bearsted golfer Matt Ford has mixed emotions after missing the cut on his Open debut at St Andrews

If Matt Ford did this interview in a month or two, maybe his answers would come from a different perspective.

But the emotion of missing the cut at his debut Open Championship last Friday at St Andrews is still raw. Disappointment outweighs pride, dropped shots override birdies.

As a professional sportsman, dropping back to finish three over par after scoring an opening round one-under 71 represents a perceived drop in standards. It shouldn’t.

The 44-year-old from Bearsted was playing in the 150th Open and left with his head held high, despite a final round where “the putter went cold” and staff were “emptying the bins” as Ford played the biggest round of his career.

“It was an amazing week and some memories that I’ll take with me for the rest of my life,” conceded Ford. “You can’t buy that, there were so many parts to it that add up to an amazing week.

“I still feel a little disappointed with how I played on the Friday, but that seems to be slowly fading away and the bigger picture is becoming stronger.”

Ford knows it was a step up in class, on and off the course.

“As an event it was the biggest that I’ve played and the best experiences from a personal or family point of view,” he continued.

“Obviously, I think you tend to remember the tournaments where you finish well.

“I don’t know if I’d put the event from a golfing perspective above my second place at the African Open, just because that was a big event and a big performance.

“At the end of the day we’re in a game where performance is key, so my performance in the second round was disappointing.”

That second round must have left a bitter taste in the mouth. Last out at 4.15pm, Ford was met with constant delays given the nature of St Andrews and the hard fairways. It