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I've interviewed quite a few PH's over the past 4-5 years for a project I'm working on, and they almost all tell me that the vast majority of their clients these days show up with a rifle they are quite competent with, regardless of caliber. I wonder if the tales you're referring to are just that... tales, not facts. One PH told me that 25 years ago it was not uncommon for a man to show up in camp with a brand new rifle he didn't know how to handle, but that that has become a rare thing in the present day.
I think that part of that phenomina is that RSA and Nambian hunts can now be done in 7-10 days, and are affordable to a much larger range of working stiff than the classic safaris were. Before the late 1980's there was not much of a safari industry in South Africa, much less Nambia. I went during the Aparthied years, and an American was a curiosity. Traditional safaris in Botswana, Tanzania or going back to Kenya were still largely 21 day full bag affairs that were expensive, and affordable largely to a wealthier clientele that weren't red neck gun nuts.
Now, red neck gun nuts (us) can save up enough cash to do a 10 day 7 animal RSA hunt, and work up 2 rifles and loads to go with it.
Next part of the eqaution is where the clients are from. Brits don't practice much, and neither do most Europeans. No opportunity.
