How many times....
Me and Good Ole Lead (who btw, is a nice enough guy)
Back in 1998, one of Louisville's most famous citiizens, John Schnatter—Papa John of Papa John's Pizza fame—was hittting balls next to a friend of his, who was taking lessons from Mike Finney.
Papa John was hitting these little weak wedges out there and after I videoed Mike's student at his request, I asked John if he wanted to see his swing. He did.
It didn't look that good,to be honest. To top it off, his grip was no better than the 30 handicap-variety. I asked him to hit a little pitch shot. He hit one that had more clubhead throwaway then a PhillyMic lob shot. I asked for a lower one. He repeated the extra-poor pitch shot.
He then started to tell me about LINK 1 and LINK 2 and how David Leadbetter was his teacher and stayed at his house and how they had spent a LOT of time on his swing.
Really? I said, trying to keep my eyes from rolling back in my head.
"All I know is....you ought to be able to hit a little pitch on the way down like this"...BAM...I hit one of those pitches that Leadbetter probably likes, but can't seem to do for the cameras in one of those 10,000 articles that he has wriiten...and I nodded and walked away.
A couple of days later John called Mike and asked to take lessons from us.
Six months later, after taking dozens of lessons from us, Papa John went from maybe 95 shooter to sometimes 75 shooter.
Really.
EVERY SINGLE NEW THING I taught him, he would say Leadbetter told him the exact opposite.
"Really?" I'd say....well....he's wrong and this is why.....
So after maybe $50,000 dollars worth of lessons from the "WORLD's #1 coach," he was now listening and IMPROVING RAPIDLY from the world #1 Cocky Italian Ya'T .
About a year later, John played in a pro-am with David Frost at the Doral Tour event.
John shot 74 and dove it by Frosty more than a few times (from the member tees....but still!).
A few months later David Leadbetter and David Frost took MY STUDENT (and Mike's) to Augusta to pitch an informercial idea to John, where John would say he learned it all (phooey!) from Leadbetter.
Lucky for me, Papa John can buy and sell the suitors into slavery, and declined the (dishonest) offer.
Oh by the way, John beat Lead 83 to 87.
Just another story for what'll be a really good (true story) book one day.
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