Like many of us, Greg Johnson grew up wanting to hit the buzzer-beater shot, throw the final touchdown, and sink the winning putt. Also like many of us, Johnson didn't have the extraordinary physical gifts to make those dreams come true at the professional level.
But he did have a plan and determination. So he became an athletic trainer, paying his dues and eventually working with the Atlanta Braves, the USFL, and both the PGA and LPGA.
From the Dugout and the 19th Hole
takes the reader behind the scenes to see what life really is like in the locker rooms, at home, and on the road. Johnson met Mickey Mantle and worked on Tom Glavine. In the book, Sam Snead and Martina Navritalova show up for treatments, Hank Aaron and Ted Turner talk baseball, and gold greats Payne Stewart and Jack Nicklaus dispense sage advice.
Among the great stories (Such as seeing
Cy Young
-winner Steve Bedrosian out-running an angry bull), Johnson reminds us that sports are more than fame and spectacle. Sports has lessons to teach, and Johnson was an adept pupil who looks back over his career and shares what he's learned-including why being late to a meeting might mean you're horse shit.
My best job ever was as an athletic trainer on the PGA Tour. I loved the game even before I got a job in it, and I grew up idolizing Tom Watson and Arnold Palmer. Then I not only got to meet them, but I got the chance to get to know them as friends. Yep. Best job ever.