Matt Ford found himself sandwiched between two of the world’s best golfers when he played at the French Open last week.

The 35-year-old from Bearsted rubbed shoulders with former World No.1 Luke Donald and 2010 US Open champion Graeme McDowell during his week at Le Golf National.

Ford missed the cut at the Alstom Open de France in Paris but he relished his foray into the star-studded world of elite golf.

He said: “I loved it. I had a couple of practice rounds and played with Luke Donald and a couple of other guys who have been playing good golf.

“It was something different to what I’ve been used to. It’s a circus, especially around the bigger guys on the practice grounds. I was between Donald and McDowell at one point and I felt I had to move away because I couldn’t concentrate.

“I was a bit nervous teeing off with Donald. His rhythm is pretty special. You can’t emulate everybody. Tiger Woods and Bubba Watson, those type of guys aren’t the same sort of player as me so there’s no point trying to emulate them. But Donald is the same build as me and his game is where I want to be - the consistency and accuracy.”

Rounds of 74 and 77 left Ford nine-over-par, six shots off the cut. McDowell came through to win the event, while Donald was one of seven players tied for 42nd.