Todd Clements was keeping the champagne on ice despite celebrating his birthday in style with a hole-in-one on the opening day of the Betfred British Masters hosted by Sir Nick Faldo.
The Englishman, who turned 28 on Thursday, enjoyed a moment to remember when he holed his tee shot at the 185-yard par-three seventh with an eight iron at The Belfry.
Clements, who signed for a one-under-par 71 after making three birdies and four bogeys as well as his eagle, sits four shots adrift of first-round co-leaders Paul Waring and Jeong weon Ko.
“Coming off the sixth green, my head was a bit wobbled [after I] made bogey there,” he told the DP World Tour in a post-round chat in the Green Room.
“It was a good number, 186 yards slightly just out the left. Fortunately for me, I hit one of the only good shots of the day actually and it pitched a few short and rolled in. So yeah, it was delightful."
Clements, who won his maiden DP World Tour title in his rookie season last year, has now made six aces in his career, with this his first on Tour. .
“Probably the best I've had in a long, long time. But yeah, helped my score out a lot, so I was delighted with that,” he said.
Asked how he would celebrate the moment, he added: "Well, there could be a few glasses of this (referencing the bottle of champagne he won).
"No, I’ll save this for tomorrow afternoon. I think just a bit of practise, a bit of cooling down and then a nice bit of food. Might even treat myself to a glass of red wine."
Earlier this season, Clements wasn’t in such good spirits.
After an opening-round 76 at the Porsche Singapore Classic, he expressed his frustrations with where his game was at it, saying the “grind was real” and “if you don’t laugh, you’ll cry!”
But on the back of a top 30 and then a tie for tenth in his last two starts, confidence is returning in his game, and he is hopeful of a strong finish to the season.
“I think that was probably the low point of my season and then after some reflection I made a couple of changes, and I feel in a much better place.
“Life's a bit simpler, I enjoy my golf a lot more. It's a crazy game that takes you up mountains and down cliffs, but one I love and can't wait to get stuck into tomorrow.”
