My primary source was Pat Patterson, and he was looking to clear his name. From everything I gathered, he was the “mark” and completely innocent. Since he was associated with the tour, he wanted the word to get out and helped connect me with almost everyone. A lot of the players over 50 don’t have social media.
Below are some of the text messages he shared with me that didn’t make the story, you can scroll within the window to view them all. This is an excellent insight into who Randal was behind closed doors. He was mad at players for wanting to get paid.
In my brief career in uncovering stories like this, you have two types of “villains .”One, like Randal Sparks, who, for the most part, tries to stay hidden. Outside of a few emails, I haven’t heard from him since the story came out. The second type will never stop talking. (i.e., Dustin Manning from the Big Money Classic). Stu Patterson fell into the latter category. I spent over four hours on the phone with him. He constantly contradicted himself, so it’s hard to find the truth. But he also is a central figure in the story, so it’s my job to pick out the parts that are vital to the story and are the truth.
