Bill Lockie's part in the

development of US Tour

winner Martin Laird

FROM THE PGA E-BULLETIN
The former coach to Martin Laird revealed he
nearly drove off the road when he heard his
former charge had won a USPGA Tour title in
Las Vegas.
Laird has become Scotland's new golfing hero after
his stunning success last week, which not only earned
him a bumper $756,000 pay-day but also a two-year
exemption.
Bill Lockie, pictured, first coached Laird as a raw teenager during a couple of winters at Barassie Golf Club, before he headed off to America on a golf scholarship at Colorado State University.
The pair have kept in contact ever since and Lockie, an Advanced Fellow of the PGA, admitted he was ecstatic when he heard of Laird's triumph. “I was driving through Fife when news of Martin's success in Las Vegas came on the sports bulletin,” recalled Lockie.
“I nearly drove off the road, I was shouting and hollering and whooping. It was a great feeling and I was so pleased for Martin and hopefully he can move on
from here.
"I coached him over a couple of winters when he was in his mid-teens, helping him get down from two or three to scratch, and then he went on a golf scholarship
to America, but we've stayed in touch."
Lockie, a renowned coach and still an accomplished player who won the Senior PGA Professional Championship two years ago and finished runner-up this year, has kept close tabs on Laird's progress and is intrigued at finding out the key to his former protégé’s success.
“I still email him regularly and we chat occasionally. The biggest thing I remember is that when he went away to America he had a normal, lowish ball flight,” said Lockie.
“He let me see his game after the second year he’d been in the States and he had added 40 yards in length and his ball flight was twice as high.
“In golf we always talk about taking that next step and I've asked Martin if he can put a finger on that step he has taken.
“I'm really interested to find out what that was, to discover how he felt he achieved that added distance that's made the difference."