Tom McCowan

Born in Scotland in 1947 I was the second son of John and Elizabeth McCowan. My grandfather (a very dominating Victorian gentleman), father and mother all played golf, so my brother and I started playing with our parents clubs at a very young age.

We had a hole cut into the drying green in the back green for putting, this area also served as the teeing ground for playing a golf ball over the garden into the goal mouth of the hockey pitch that ran parallel to the bottom end.

One day when my parents had gone to bring my grandparents to the house and my brother and I were left playing putting on the green in the garden. We decided to play, who could score the most goals. Having being beaten by my big brother I challenged him to play back up over the garden to our green, the closest to the hole the winner, my ball was played better than ever before (possibly the first time I ever made a good swing), it flew over everything including one of the small upper windows of the dining room leaving a roundish hole in the glass. What happened when my parents returned did not dampen my enthusiasm for playing golf, as my father said later in private “it is a very nice feeling when you make a good swing, but don’t ever play in the direction of the window again!” Shortly after this incident we were taken to play on a nearby 6 hole pitching and putting course.

I don’t remember when or how I started to play golf, but I do remember him showing me how to play on a proper golf course, the Broomfield course in Montrose in the summer of 1956.

My parents playing at Crieff GC 1940.

My Mother and Grandfather playing at Crieff GC 1940.


Actually

 

I am a golf professional licensed under the Real Federacion Española de Golf as Maestro Tecnico y Jugador (teaching and playing professional), a member, of the Association de Professionals de Golf de España (PGA of Spain), and a clubmaker with a class “A” certificate issued by the Professional Clubmakers Society.

I attempted to get my players card at the European Tour School, and played on the Asian Tour, while living in Abu Dhabi. This was before there were any grass golf courses; we played on sand course with the aid of a 1 foot square piece of architectural grass, putting on browns not greens.

I have dedicated many years to dispensing golf instruction to a great number of golfers. My students come from many different countries, as well as from Spain where I have lived for the last 30 years.

Repairing clubs, refurbishing woods and teaching my way of how to play golf; in Madrid, at Somontes Practice Ground and Las Encinas Sports Club, in Merida where I also built the golf course, and organised Don Tello Club de Golf, in Badajoz at Guadiana Golf and for the last 20 years in Alicante, organising the course and golf at Bonalba Golf Club, Redesigning and partially building the 18 hole El Plantio Golf Resort, then moved to the newly opened course, Alicante Golf. I also played in several Campeonato’s and tried several times to get my players card on the European Senior Tour.

One thing that you have to remember is that;
“To play a good golf shot, you do not hit the ball, the clubhead hits the ball. You swing the clubhead!”

I am also the author of the books; So…You want to play golf?
and in Spanish; ¿Quieres jugar al golf?