Back in 2007, Sky Sports Golf Analyst Nick Dougherty found himself in contention to win a major championship.

The man from Bootle in Merseyside, found himself leading the field after round one, coming into the clubhouse at two-under par.

Dougherty dropped off the pace in the second round, but was drawn to play alongside Tiger Woods in the third round of the championship, with the 15-time Major champion going on to finish tied for second with Jim Furyk.

But speaking to Mail Sport this weekend at Royal Portrush, Dougherty revelled in the majesty of Woods.

‘I don’t think anyone’s ever been as precise as Tiger [when it comes to hitting their irons,’ Dougherty said.

Sky Sports golf analyst Nick Dougherty has revealed what its really like to play a round with Tiger Woods

Dougherty and Woods teed up together in the third round of the 2007 US Open championship

‘He has great course management with his irons as well, but also hit his target so often, had every single shot in the book.

‘I was lucky enough to see him in action and play alongside him in a major.

‘No one was better,’ he added, revelling in the mastery of the American superstar.

Dougherty, himself, was an accomplished professional. During his esteemed career, he won three times on the DP World Tour, with perhaps his biggest victory coming at the Alfred Dunhill Links Championship in 2007.

Prior to that, the Englishman had placed seventh at the US Open, his best placing at a major. But when pressed on his key takeaways from playing with Tiger, he revealed the 82-time winner on the PGA Tour was ‘painting pictures’ while the rest of the field at Oakmont were simply trying to hang on in there.

‘I think the big thing I took away from it, and it wasn’t like it made me feel disappointed, but I realised how different he was to me,’ Dougherty told Mail Sport.

‘Every other top player, whether it be Ernie or Vijay or my generation or Phil, that I ever got to play with, I always thought that on my day, not across the course of a career, but on my day I think I can beat you. But when I played with Tiger I thought, my goodness, he was just so much better than me in every department.

‘And I just thought: “Wow”. I couldn’t get my head around how playful Tiger was at a US Open Course like Oakmont, which was all about just hanging on.

Dougherty revealed he was astounded by Tiger Woods’ ‘laser’ focus throughout the round 

‘I mean, he was painting pictures. He was an artist out there.’

Dougherty then revealed the one thing that stood out to him most about Tiger, revealing that he was astounded by how he kept his laser focus all while being constantly surrounded by fans at one of the biggest tournaments in the world.

‘Just how in the circus that it is that follows Tiger Woods, where there’s all this noise, all this distraction, this theater, it’s amazing to be a part of, but still, a lot going on.

‘He was just, it’s like he couldn’t see it. He was just so focused. I’ve never seen laser-like focus.

‘[His aura] was amazing. Off the charts.’

Watch live coverage of The 153rd Open from Royal Portrush exclusively on Sky Sports and NOW from Thursday 17 July, with wall-to-wall preview coverage available from Monday 15 July on Sky Sports Golf.