Many years ago I had the privilege of meeting Arnold Palmer. He hit his tee shot into the tree I was standing under, and the ball dropped out 10 feet in front of me. Within minutes there were 100 people standing there beside me.
Arnie eventually made his way to the ball, took off his hat and wiped his brow, and then put his huge hand on his bag of clubs as he surveyed the situation. He studied for a moment, unsure of what to do. He was 200 yards out and had this huge tree he had to slice the ball around to get the ball anywhere near the green. So he goes back and forth between what appeared to be a 3-iron and a 3-wood. After a few practice swings with both clubs, he decided on the 3wood. As he gripped the 3wood, I noticed his hands.... they looked like they were made specifically to swing a golf club. His grip looked so comfortable!
Then he took his stance and grounded the club behind the ball. But then he backed off again, unsure of which club to use, or whether he should just take his medicine and punch out sideways.
Arnie looked dead at me and said, "Young fella, what would you do in this situation?" I couldn't believe that he was talking to me! But I didn't hesitate. "Mr. Palmer, I'm pretty sure that if I was in your situation, with all these people watching, I would completely whiff it." The whole gallery burst out laughing and Arnie laughed right along with them. He replied, "Well... that's not exactly the mental image I needed, but at least you're honest." And everyone laughed even more. LOL...
Imagine that.. the great Arnold Palmer, taking a moment out of his life to simply acknowledge me? I became a member of Arnie's Army that day. And I think about how these big-name pros today walk around with a stick up their ass like they're owed something more than the tens of millions they already have in the bank.
That's why Arnold Palmer mattered. He was a true ambassador of the game.
Not even an hour later I'm walking to a different hole and who do I see? Roger Maltbie walking right toward me. He had his headset down around his neck and as I got closer, I said, "Hey, Roger - you and Johnny (Miller) are the best! Keep up the great work!"
He looked me dead in the eyes and didn't say a word. Just kept walking. And I know he heard me. And I thought, "well, maybe he's just having a tough day, who knows." But that's the difference between a guy like Roger Maltbie and a guy like Arnold Palmer. Arnie never took his place in the game for granted.
As for Harrington's meltdown, he's dead wrong. I'm not a huge Maltbie fan, but he's not getting paid to help those guys look for wayward tee shots. If Harrington wants a friend to help him find lost tee shots, let him buy a dog and bring it with him when he plays.