On Tuesday Jack icklaus was awarded the honorary citizenship of St Andrews. He is only the third American, after Benjamin Franklin and Bobby Jones to be awarded this honour.

I was in the town heading to pay my respects to Old and Young Tom Morris. I stopped one of the stewards outside one of the university to ask for directions and he said you can’t get to it at the moment there are too many falling rocks, it’s dangerous so it’s closed.

But, he said, you can see Jack come out in a minute, And he let me go across the courtyard past Younger Hall where Jack was being invested as an honorary citizen of St Andrews.

Inside too were Gary Player, Lee Trevino, Sandy Lyle, Dame Laura Davies and Jose-Maria Olazabal all being given honorary degrees.

Jack come out in a minute? He took a couple of hours.While I waited and waited patiently a dear American friend passed in a courtesy car, with just a driver, so I was able to wave to him.

Eventually Jack and Barbara paraded the streets in a blue and white Rolls Royce and I ran alongside them. It was a moment. A farewell, because he won’t be coming back again.