Golfer. An appreciation

JOHN McTear, who has died at the age of 70 after a short battle with cancer, was not one of golf’s giants but what he lacked in height he more than made up for in guile and perseverance.

At just 5’ 4” tall, McTear always maintained that his relatively small stature held him back in the game he cherished but there were many other valuable attributes in his armoury which helped him forge a successful career of great longevity.

“John was always a good putter and he could hole out under pressure,” recalled his long-standing friend and old touring companion, Bill Lockie. “He had tremendous tenacity under a very calm exterior. As a tournament golfer, that was one of his main attributes; the ability to stay calm and play his normal golf when others were unable to. He didn’t hit it a long way but he was straight and with his putting and his half-wedge shots he probably punched above his weight over the years.”

In addition to being the popular and accommodating club professional at Cowglen on Glasgow’s southside for over 20 years, McTear enjoyed stints on both the European Tour and the European Senior Tour. As a teenager, his golfing senses were stirred by watching the alluring Arnold Palmer win the Open Championship at Troon in 1962.

''Jack Nicklaus might be the greatest golfer who ever lived, but he doesn't have the same charisma, I could watch Palmer just putting on a glove,” said McTear after finally meeting his idol during the 2003 Senior Open at Turnberry. ''He was very pleasant, absolutely charming and I think he is the man.”

Four years after being left captivated by Palmer’s Troon triumph of 1962, McTear would notch his first national title when he won the Scottish Boys’ Championship in 1966. His impressive amateur resume was burnished in 1970 when he captured the prestigious West of Ireland title with a victory over the highly-rated John O’Leary, who would go on to become a two-time European Tour winner and Ryder Cup player.

McTear’s own professional career included a runners-up finish to Bernard Gallacher in the 1974 Scottish PGA Championship and an appearance in the 1980 PGA Cup while he would ply his trade on the fledgling European Tour for five years. McTear also participated in six Open Championships.

The over-50s circuit would give him a new lease of sporting life and McTear racked up five top-10s on the European Senior Tour. A victory in the 2001 PGA Senior Club Professionals’ Championship provided a silver lining for this consummate professional.

McTear was re-instated as an amateur a couple of seasons ago and, only last year, won the Royal Troon senior club championship. “We played a lot of golf together down the years and I’ll miss him and his dry sense of humour,” reflected Lockie of this true golfing gentleman.

NICK RODGER