 | GO THE EXTRA MILE Sport Relief Saturday:
10 July 2004 BBC One from 1900 BST |
Laura Davis sorted out the men from the girls as she staged a Sport Relief fourball on a very special course in Surrey.
Britain's number one female golfer had no excuses for not beating her celebrity rivals; England rugby star Matt Dawson and Radio One pair Mark Chapman and DJ Spoony.
After all, the tournament was literally in her own back yard.
Davies, who has 20 LPGA tour victories to her name in a majestic career, built a top-grade green and punishing bunker and surrounded both with nine tees to create the perfect practice facility.
Her celebrity rivals were given a tour of the garden course during a special challenge for Sport Relief, during which the four attempted to cover a mile of golf in recognition of the charity's go the extra mile campaign.
A series of mile events are taking place this summer, culminating in the Sport Relief Miles on July 10.
|  Her garden is every boy's dream |
Their shot total cannot be revealed, as BBC viewers will get the chance to predict the score in a television competition to run this summer.
But it is fair to say that Davies felt more at home than the other three.
"I still find it hard to motivate myself to get out there because practice is not my best thing," she admitted.
But it's nice that I don't have to go down the range with loads of other people chipping alongside me. I can just take myself leisurely around the garden and face a wide range of really interesting shots."
Davies built the small-but-perfectly-formed course nine years ago, with the help of her stepdad and a friend.
And the celebrity trio who took her on for Sport Relief were clearly green with envy.
"I just can't believe this garden," Chapman said.
He added: "It is just fantastic. She has got a football pitch, a tennis court and a nine-hole golf course - all in the garden. It is just like every boy's dream."
The trio also picked up some valuable tips from Davies during a warm-up session for the mile challenge and Davies was impressed with all three of her pupils.
"They are all quite good golfers and when you have got someone who knows what they are doing initially then it just needs the odd tip here and there.
 DJ Spoony attempts a putt under Davies' watchful gaze |
"Matt has got a good swing and Mark looks like he plays. He only plays about six months a year - he says he's a bit of a fair-weather golfer - but he's got a good swing. "Spoony has got a nice touch around the greens and has even brought his golf coach with him, so he obviously has the bug."
Davies' best piece of advice for the trio was clearly what drove her to build her own course in the first place.
"The more you practice the better you will get, it's as simple as that," she said.
"Golf is unfortunately one of those games where you need to practice a lot to become good at it."
No wonder Davies is still among the elite of women's golf.
MMIX
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