Making cut like massive weight lifted from my shoulders

 Ladies' European Tour Diary: Martina Gillen, although not getting carried away, was overjoyed to make the cut in the Northern Ireland Women's Open at the weekend

I now know what it's like to play at the weekend, which is a massive relief. In making my first cut, it seems like a massive weight has been lifted from my shoulders, psychologically at least. The longer you go without playing at the weekend the more it damages your confidence, gnawing away bit by bit.

I'm certainly not getting carried away. After all, a tie for 55th place isn't exactly setting the tournament alight.

I managed to earn a cheque for €675, out of which I have to pay a seven-and-a-half per cent Ladies European Tour levy and 15 per cent withholding tax because the tournament was played in Northern Ireland.

Not that I am complaining, as three of the girls who made the cut didn't get a cheque. While some may view this as a minor milestone, for me it is an important step forward. It's a common refrain from golfers, but I actually played a great deal better than I scored, despite pretty atrocious weather conditions.

In the opening round I don't know how many putts shimmied past the hole. It wasn't that I was putting badly; I just couldn't get anything to drop. Frustration can creep in and you end up pushing a little bit more, looking for a change in fortune.

It's a double-edged sword that can make or break a round. Finishing six over meant that it was going to be very difficult to make the cut.

Claire Coughlan proved to be a very popular young woman when she came in following her opening round. We didn't realise it at the time, but she was alleged to have had an albatross, two, at the par-five third hole. It meant that she was leading the tournament and her picture was flashed up on the tour website.

There was a cluster of reporters waiting for her when she finished her round, looking for her to recount her extraordinary feat. However, a glitch in communication provided the tournament organisers with erroneous information.

The scores after every three holes are communicated back to those in charge of the master scoreboard and the woman relaying that information from the back of the third green misheard what Claire had said. Instead of putting her down for a birdie four, she was credited with a two.

For those who know the third hole in Templepatrick, it was a pretty unlikely feat as the tee-shot is a lay up in front of a hazard and the second demands a similar requirement before playing a wedge or short iron to the green. For Claire to have an albatross she would have had to hit a low, hooking three-wood over 350 yards across two hazards. She's good but . . .

Having my brother Wayne on the bag was comforting, and he offered great support throughout the tournament. Going out on the Saturday I thought the cut would come at five over, but given the difficult conditions my 73 meant that I made it and I was really looking forward to playing on the Sunday. There was torrential rain from the moment that I drew back the curtains to when I finished my round.

We were very fortunate that the venue has a 16-bay covered driving range so that we were at least able to do our warm up and stay dry, but once out on the course it was a losing battle, no matter how many towels you had in the bag.

I played quite nicely, but a bogey on the 11th and a double at the next killed the momentum of the round.

Overall the week had been a very positive experience, from the nice facilities and good food to my debut in a tournament pro-am. I really enjoyed the occasion playing alongside the McKeevers, who were great company over the five hours and spent some time with them unwinding that night.

I don't think I'll be hitting the shops with the cheque, but at least it represents progress. This week the tour moves to Eindhoven and the opportunity to play successive weeks, something that is very important in terms of game sharpness. I realise I have to maximise any opportunity that I get to play and that's my focus this week.

Once again it'll be a case of a curtailed build-up in terms of practice for the event, but I'm more au fait with those demands at this stage.