I’m a Ryder Cup legend who earned £50m but before I was famous I sold sausage rolls and coached juniors for just £1
IAN POULTER got the Postman nickname for delivering the goods in the Ryder Cup.
And his lucrative golfing career has earned him around £70million and the chance to drive around in any of his SEVEN Ferraris.
But before making his name as a pro, Arsenal-mad Poulter lived a far more humble lifestyle.
And that saw him coach youngsters for just £1 and even sell sausage rolls.
Poulter, now 47, was a rising star and joined Leighton Buzzard Golf Club as their assistant pro.
And that saw him help develop the juniors with Sunday morning sessions.
Kids aged between five and ten would turn up and each pay a quid for coaching from a man who would go on to win 17 professional tournaments and finish second in The Open in 2008.
Lee Scarbrow, PGA pro at Leighton Buzzard, said: “We used to have at least 60 children coming along for those sessions.
“It was Ian’s love of the game and his enthusiasm that helped drive this forward.
“He was a good little coach – anything he put his mind to he was good at, which made him such a pain in the neck at times!”
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And Poulter showed his generous side again when the club needed to raise funds to cover the cost of a new pro shop.
Scarbrow added to the European Tour: “When the club built a new clubhouse we had to run the pro shop from a shed.
“To help make money in the winter Ian came up with the idea that we should sell hot soup and sausage rolls from the shed.
“He would go and visit the baker’s each day to pick up the sausage rolls.
“Every little helped the club, and it showed he had an entrepreneurial side to him – he now deals in Ferraris which is a bit of a step up!”
POULTER’S PETROL POWER
Poulter’s incredible collection of Ferraris is worth £20m alone and includes two LaFerraris, a Ferrari F40, a Ferrari F12 TDF, a 1985 Ferrari 288 GTO, a Ferrari F50 and a 2002 Enzo Ferrari.
The petrolhead also owns a Bugatti Veyron, a Porsche 911 GT2, a Ford GT and several Mercedes – with most of them kept at his massive private Florida mansion where he lives with his wife Katie and their four children.
And he has been able to pay for all his motors thanks to his success on the course over the years.
After turning pro in 1995, his two biggest wins came at the World Gold Championships in 2010 in Arizona and then in China two years later.
Arguably his greatest achievements have come when representing Europe in the Ryder Cup, though.
In seven appearances, Poulter has racked up five victories and 16 points to become a certified hero for his team.
But he won’t be teeing it up with Rory McIlroy and Co at the Macro Simone Golf and Country Club next weekend for the 44th edition of the iconic tournament.
However, he was snubbed alongside the likes of Sergio Garcia, Martin Kaymer, Thomas Pieters, Lee Westwood and original 2023 captain Henrik Stenson after grabbing the Saudi money to join LIV Golf.
That saw Poulter reportedly pocket between £16m and £24m for signing up to the controversial breakaway tour.
And so that ramped up his career earnings on top of the £45m he has earned from the PGA Tour and European Tour.
Poulter – known for his wacky outfits – also has sponsorship deals with various brands including CoolSculpting, fashion brand IJP Design, Oakley, Nikon, Audemars Piguet, OKX, EA Sports and private jet company Marquis Jet.