Brandel should realize the time, passion, study, commitment and the amount of devotion that coaches put in to help their students succeed. I say this because I and my assistant Adam Schreiber spent countless hours in the late 80s and early 90s on the range helping Brandel to try to reach his goals. It certainly was not for the money, as I think the check is still in the mail.
I'm guessing this is universal.
not universal, but it tells you all you need to know about Brandel.
As an aspiring player/teacher in that era, I always paid for lessons, never negotiated or assumed anything.
Many instructors would then discount future lessons on their own when I immediately whipped out my wallet to pay, or spend extra time with me, and find time for me in their busy books.
Many times I was driving 5-10 hours each way on a day off, then turning around and driving back in time for work the next day-so I wanted the instructor fully engaged and motivated, and fully aware of my committment and respect for his time.
You get what you pay for(or offer to) and sometimes it's the difference between them picking up the phone or not, even though every instructor I've ever know does more than his share of pro bono lessons.
I've maintained that philosophy to this day as I work with juniors, pros and locals-when they whip out $60 in small bills meticulously precounted out before retreating to their 2002 Ford Focus, you can usually find a way to make that hour turn into two(maybe not consecutive), or allow them to hang around and use the facility while you eavesdrop on their practice-and invite them to come back for some pro bono work or reduced rates should they continue to show passion and dedication.
I worked with Leadbetter on my own game during the era mentioned and, despite being the most in demand coach in golf at the time, he was always completely engaged and incredibly reasonable in his pricing of mini schools(often with Tour players) and private lessons at that time. He is and remains a class act.
As a student,I've always subscribed to the theory that by the time you've heard of a teacher, their rates are no longer negotiable(by the student) and any effort to do so is a turn off. Those same teachers will then turn around and charge far less than one would've ever negotiated (for a dedicated and respectful student).