Don’t miss Chronicle golf writer Steve Campbell’s fine article on the funeral yesterday for longtime Houston golf teaching professional, Dick Harmon, who died unexpectedly last week. As with the visitation on Thursday evening that I attended in an overflowing funeral home, the funeral was a bittersweet affair in which laughter mixed with tears as friends and family members grappled with the sudden loss of Dick’s humanity, grace, dry wit and wonderful nature. He was truly a special man.
Best crack of the funeral came from brother Bill Harmon, who passed along during his eulogy a prediction that former PGA Tour pro and current CBS color commentator Lanny Wadkins made about Dick’s first meeting in heaven with his late father Claude, who was a rather acerbic character at times, particularly with regard to his four sons. The subject of that predicted first meeting was brother Butch, who tutored Tiger Woods during college and his first several years on the Tour before Woods unceremoniously fired him. Inasmuch as I have had the pleasure of a personal relationship with each of Claude, Dick and Butch, I can vouch for the validity of Wadkins’ prediction:

“[Wadkins] said he knew for a fact what my dad said to Dick when he saw him in heaven,” Bill Harmon said. “The first thing out of his mouth was:

‘How the hell did Butch screw up that Tiger deal?’ “

Laughter and applause spread across the church. Butch Harmon . . . laughed as hard as anybody.

God Bless Dick Harmon and the entire Harmon Family.