Producer is happy he took his best shot

By Will Harris

Correspondent

If you'd asked John Mamoudis a year ago what he did for a living, he would have told you he was in the construction/development business.

These days, he's far more focused on golf - not as a hobby, as a career.

Although he remains the president and CEO of JTM Development Corp. in Virginia Beach, Mamoudis is fast becoming a name within the world of golf. He's the creator of a computerized golf aid called At Your Feet (its slogan: "Golf Tips at Your Shoe Tips"), is founder of the HorsePower Tee Shot Tour and executive producer of the Speed TV series "Big Shots: Titans at the Tee," which focuses on the sport of power golf.

"Among any golf course or community, there are a couple of guys who can hit it further than anybody else, either through natural physical attributes or skill level," Mamoudis said.

"Power golf takes those people, puts them on a golf hole and asks them to shape a long drive shot. You've got to hit a draw, you've got to hit a fade and you've got to hit within the constraints of a fairway of a particular golf course."

Mamoudis took up the sport of long-drive golfing as a hobby a few years ago, but he noticed that the various events drew no spectators.

"I said to myself, 'All of these participants spent their money to get here, but nobody is watching. We need to come up with an idea that'll make people watch!' "

He came up with the concept of teaming professional long-drive golfers with NASCAR drivers and took it to his friend and fellow avid golfer Jeff Hammond, lead announcer for FOX's NASCAR coverage.

"Jeff and I talked about some scenarios, and from there we started asking NASCAR drivers if they wanted to participate in such an event. After that, things just started falling into place."

A number of drivers - including Brian Vickers, Marcos Ambrose and Austin Petty - participated in the first season of the series, which ended this week and is scheduled to be rebroadcast on Speed TV later this year.

Mamoudis was most impressed, however, by the golfing performance of Hermie Sadler.

"He kind of surprised me, because he's not the biggest guy out there. But he competed well, hit the ball extremely well and fought through it all to score the most points."

Looking back at the first season of "Big Shots," Mamoudis said it lived up to his expectations for making power golf into an event sport, but he concedes that it was a demanding experience.

"It was a learning curve, trying to get the right mix, putting the right story together with the right shots. We ran into a couple of challenging events where it rained, and that threw in a new wrinkle, but overall we're very, very happy with how it turned out."

If nothing else, Mamoudis hopes the series has earned power golf more credibility among golf purists.

"We wanted to get some respect from the golf community, the PGA. We're not just a bunch of freaks out here hitting golf balls. We can shape 'em, we can hit 'em long and we can score."

Will Harris, nonstoppop@cox.net