John Fulton is currently captain at the prestigious Woburn Golf Club near Milton Keynes.

And the former Drumlanrig and High School pupil had an extra special surprise for guests at the recent annual dinner, which had television personality Tom O'Connor as chief guest – with the sweets from his home town taking pride of place on every table.

He said: "I wanted to have a rugby and Scottish slant to my Captain's Dinner. Rugby was my first sport, which is inevitable after being brought up in Hawick I guess. I had a rugby quiz with various prizes. The Hawick Balls were simply an idea to let the 160 men taste something a bit different.

"I bought 24 tins and was left with only a few sweets. The members seemed to enjoy them and 18 tins were taken home as souvenirs. Alex Hay, the retired BBC golf commentator and previous captain at Woburn GC, took a tin home to share with his family."

John, whose wife Clare will be lady captain at Woburn in 2012, enjoyed rounds of golf at the Vertish and Minto during his younger years before the family moved to Cheshire after his father was made redundant in 1962.

He joined Woburn in 1985 when his career as a chartered accountant took him to Bedfordshire.