Recently qualified Certified Putting Instructor (CPI) Alan Logan is looking forward to the season at Cochrane Castle Golf Club, just outside Glasgow, in Scotland. The club, which was founded in 1895, has a special distinction of having three of its members play in the Walker Cup over the years: John Caven, Barclay Howard and Dean Robertson.
Last year Logan, a member of the PGA of Great Britain and decided to focus more on his coaching, setting very clear goals and investing into technology and the CPI Course to further develop his coaching knowledge with an eye on the short game.
“I would highly recommend the CPI Course to my fellow PGA professionals. It refreshed my memory of things I might have heard of or looked at in the past. When I logged on I realised there was a huge amount of content and really took time to look at it. I really enjoyed it. It gave me a structure, which will be great to use for my coaching.
“I have twins, so the online aspects of the CPI Course were important because I could do it online when I had time.
“Before the CPI Course I would simplify my putting lessons to just three basic things and select the best ones to work on and provide tasks, games or drills for each, but wouldn’t go into too much detail. Now I can go into a lot more detail with my students.
“As an example one of my students came to me and he was a good player but his putting style needed some work. I changed his setup and posture and straight away we both saw the results. He was able to putt with much more rhythm. If I had been giving that lesson before becoming a CPI I would have simply worked on the areas with drills and would not have made the changes that I did. ”
CPI Alan Logan with Frank Thomas, at Cochrane Castle Golf Club near Glasgow
Logan has always loved golf and becoming a golf professional was what he always wanted to do. After lowering his handicap to 2, he trained at Lochwinnoch Golf Club and spent some time in the United States.
“As a junior I never had much coaching but really had my eyes opened when I received my PGA manual, attended seminars and really searched to find the secret of the perfect swing. I almost became too technical and eventually returned to a more instinctive type of swing and rediscovered the simplicity of golf,” said Logan, reflecting on his experience which he looks forward to sharing with his club members as he helps them improve and builds relationships.
“I am pushing myself to coach more. It is a great way to engage with members. I am part of the marketing committee at the golf club and we all would like to see additional members join the club. As the professional I can help connect golfers and encourage them to play more, get handicaps and become part of the club.”
Frank Thomas, founder of Frankly Golf, former longtime USGA Technical Director, inventor of the graphite shaft and the person who introduced the Stimpmeter to the game, said
“It is rewarding to see how Alan has been able to engage with his members more effectively because of the knowledge base the CPI Course provides. He has reaped the immediate benefits by applying what he has learned and this will only continue to grow as his teaching clientele expands. The club, the members and the game are all beneficiaries of Alan’s new CPI certification.”
Certified Putting Instructor 