mps
I've played Muirfield by myself, with 4-balls I have brought over, with other singles and with members. I lucked out th1st time I got there in 1978 in that good ole' Capn. Hanmer seemed to admire my tatty tweed jacket and gravy stained tie, take amusement from my letter of introduction from my "club" at the time, Mill Valley Men's Club, and take pity on my general demeanor (as I was 2 weeks into a 3 week trip to Scotland, my liver was near shutdown mode). He put me off the 1st tee the next day. Subsequently, I wrote him grovelling letters each year begging to play again, and he accommodated me, always off hte 1st tee. There were even times in the dining room when he and I were the only souls there except the food and drink servers when he grunted at me once or twice.
This shows you that life is just a series of chances. For me, this chance meant that in the 80's when I visited Scotland 1-4 months a year and played 95% of my golf in Dornoch, Muirfield was the only other course that I made it a point to play, every year.