Interesting Johnny Miller side-story here.
Several years ago the Women's US Open came to Saucon Valley, a "prestigious" private club here in the Lehigh Valley. I decided to take my wife and daughter to enjoy the festivities. As we walked through the entry gates, there were billboards posted that Johnny Miller and Dottie Pepper would be signing autographs in one of tents just up ahead for that day. I look about 100 yards ahead and sure enough - Miller is there sitting in a chair behind a table under the tent.
Hey - it's not everyday that you get to personally meet a guy who still holds the all-time record for lowest final-round ever in a major championship (63), going all the way back to 1973 @ Oakmont, which obviously he won. So I said why not at least shake the guy's hand, just out of respect.
So we waited in line, my daughter and I... and finally it came our turn, like 15 minutes later.
Johnny says to my daughter (who was like 12 at the time), "So, young lady... do you play golf?" My daughter replied, "Yeah - my dad takes me to the local course on occasion and I hit balls with him at the driving range." Johnny seemed amused enough to say, "okay - let me give you a quick pointer." So he pulls a small piece of paper from the side and draws a diagram of a circle, with a line intersecting the middle of it. "This is the ball," he said. "That line in the middle of the ball - that represents the half of the ball, this side is the side the club is on, the other side is toward the target, and just beyond that line is the ground just beyond it. The key to hitting good golf shots is to hit the ball first, then allow your club to take the divot a few inches past the line on the target side." (he drew a line a few inches past the ball to show her where the divot should start)
Now I'm listening and watching, trying to act interested... because although my daughter did join me at the local course on occasion and would hit balls at the driving range - it wasn't like she was really a student of the game. She just did this stuff out of pure fun, maybe join Dad on the course so she could drive the cart around for a few holes. She honestly didn't find golf all that enjoyable, but she played her role that day nevertheless. She says to Johnny Miller - "Well, my dad is like a 2 handicap and he teaches me all this stuff." I almost swallowed my tongue when she said that! LOL... Here is my daughter telling Johnny Miller that her dad knows as much about the game as he does! LMAO!
To his eternal credit, Johnny just chuckles a bit and says, "Wow - is that true, Dad? Your dad is a pretty good player then. Young lady - listen to your dad. If he's a 2-handicap - he obviously knows what he's talking about!" He looked at me, smiled and gave me a wink. I shook his hand and thanked him for taking the time to meet us.
I know he can be very self-promoting at times, and also be very opinionated about what he sees each week with certain players. But that day - Johnny Miller was not only very kind to me and my daughter, but he also put his ego aside long enough to recognize just how important it is to never intercede between a daughter's trust of her father, even if it was regarding something as trivial as golf.
For that reason alone I tend to cut him some slack. He made that experience very memorable for me that day.