Arnold Palmer's grandson trying to be like the King on and off the golf course

Rene Norton, a retired Army servicewoman from Minnetonka, was waiting on the tee at the TPC Twin Cities' par-3 17th when PGA Tour professional Sam Saunders and caddie Spencer Seifert came walking up with their amateur playing partners during Wednesday's 3M Open pro-am.

Located a long putt from the Polaris Military Outpost suite, the 17th tee is home this week to "Birdies for the Brave," a PGA Tour Charities program benefiting military personnel and their families.

Slight of build, Norton was wearing a caddie bib that read, "Military Caddie." She wowed Seifert by grabbing Saunders' hefty tour bag and hoisting it over her shoulders for the next 202 yards.

Then, for the entire time it took to play the 17th hole, Saunders made Norton feel like the most important person in all of Blaine and beyond.

As the hole came to a close, Saunders signed autographs slowly and legibly, posed for photos and hollered to Norton, "Hey, what are you doing at 1 p.m. tomorrow?" That's Saunders' first-round tee time.

Walking away with a big smile, Norton said, "He's so easy to talk to. I'm a big fan now."

Somewhere, the King was smiling.

"He never big-timed anybody," Saunders said. "He had a gift unlike anybody I've ever seen. I don't have it. It's hard to do. I run out of patience sometimes. I just want to run and hide sometimes and just be alone and do my own thing."

But the self-proclaimed introvert who "stresses out" in crowds doesn't run and hide. He stays patient when fans and reporters want to talk and share stories about Grandpa for the umpteenth time and beyond. He follows the King's example.

"And he always takes time to sign autographs the right way," Seifert said. "That was AP's deal. Take pride in your name and sign so people can read it."

"Yeah," Saunders adds, "my handwriting is terrible. But my signature is OK."

Saunders' favorite memories of Arnie are the man-to-man talks they'd have all alone as the sun set on the back of the range at Latrobe Country Club, the place where Arnie's father was head pro and Arnie became owner in 1971.

"Some random guy probably very inappropriately coming up to his personal home and asking for his autograph, 99 percent of the people in the world would tell them to get lost," Saunders said. "But he didn't. Whether the cameras were on him or there was only one other person there, I never saw him treat someone like he was better than they were."

Arnie's presence, of course, is felt at every turn at TPC Twin Cities, the old sod farm that 3M Open executive director Hollis Cavner bought in the late 1990s and handed over to Arnie, already his longtime friend by then, and Tom Lehman to design.

There's "Arnie's Cabin," a suite near the 10th tee. There are photos of Arnie throughout the clubhouse. And there's a collage of photos on the facade of the tunnel leading to the driving range and first tee. Above the photos are the words, "#Life Well Played, Arnie's Army, Est. 1959."

Arnie's Army got its name the year after Palmer won the first of his four Masters. Soldiers at Camp Gordon near Augusta were given free admission to man the leaderboards. A legend and his legion fell in love.

Saunders, 31, turned pro in 2009 and made the PGA Tour in 2015. With no wins and nine top-10 finishes, there is no Army following him as he fights to keep his tour card.

Cavner pulled out his phone and showed a picture of Saunders smiling alongside Tommy Ernst III, a happy young man who had just gotten a job at Second Swing through Tim Herron's "Caddie U" program for kids with disabilities.

"Sam's the one who came up to Tommy," Cavner said. "Tommy didn't know Sam was there until Sam asked if he could take a photo with him."

Somewhere, the King was smiling.