For Miles, it's been miles and miles between U.S. Open starts

Mike Miles played in his first U.S. Open in 1987 hoping to become a PGA TOUR player. When that didn't pan out, he became a successful PGA teaching professional, and now – 22 years later – he's qualified his way back into the U.S. Open for a second time. He'll tee off Thursday with the distinction of what is believed to be the longest stretch between U.S. Open appearances in history.

By T.J. Auclair, PGA.com Interactive Producer

FARMINGDALE, N.Y. -- Mike Miles was 25 years old in 1987 when he was teeing it up at Olympic Club in San Francisco in what he believed would be the first of many U.S. Open appearances.

Miles missed the cut that week, but it was OK, he figured, there would be plenty more of those to come.

Fast forward 22 years to 2009 and this week at Bethpage Black for the 109th U.S. Open. At 9:12 on Thursday morning, the now 47-year-old Miles will be hitting the first shot of his second U.S. Open.

So what happened?

“At the time (1987), I thought not only would I be playing in a lot of U.S. Opens, but I thought I’d be winning one too, like probably most of the players here feel even this week,” said Miles, who is now a Class A PGA teaching professional at Virginia Country Club in Long Beach, Calif. “But I was a lot younger and had big dreams of all the stuff that people who want to play golf dream about.”

Two decades ago, Miles was taking his lumps, pursuing the life of a TOUR pro. He actually played on the PGA TOUR in 1986 and in 1989 and spent the next several years after that playing on the Nationwide Tour.

When it didn’t pan out the way he had planned -- like many before him and many after -- Miles took some time away from the game. In fact, for five years, he says, he quit playing golf all together and didn’t even own a set of clubs.

But, as anyone who has ever played the game knows, eventually you have to cave in and scratch the golf itch, which is exactly what Miles did.

These days, he’s living a double-life of sorts. He spends most of his time giving lessons and helping others improve their games, but has experienced a resurrection in his own game in recent years.

“I’m a club professional and this week I’m a professional golfer,” said Miles, who after this week will head to New Mexico to compete in the PGA Professional National Championship. “Those are two different animals in more ways than I could ever explain. I practice very little, which I think surprises a lot of people. I think the thing I’m learning to do -- and I’ve been working on it the last few years with some help -- is that in my mind I like to have mental pictures of everything and I have a little switch.

“Because I did this for so long (played competitive golf), I know what position that switch has to be in. With the switch in the other position, I can go right into the club pro side. Now I can throw that switch back and forth pretty quickly,” he explained. “The club pro side has to be very personable and share themselves and open up, be much more outgoing, a lot less selfish, a lot less focused as far as the focus it takes to hit a golf shot.

“On the TOUR pro side, you flip the switch and you go into a bubble. You have to block things out, you have to tell people to leave you alone, because you’re trying to do your job and you’re trying to do your work, so there’s a little bit of an art to that. I never thought I could do it, but I’m learning how to do it. That’s actually the most satisfying part of this career for me is that I’m able to not stay in that TOUR pro bubble all day long. I can get out of it and actually sometimes play in the other guys’ body. That’s hard to do.”

Qualifying wasn’t easy. Miles shot rounds of 72-72 in a 36-hole sectional qualifier at Saticoy Country Club in Somis, Calif. That earned him a spot in a four-way playoff for three spots in the U.S. Open.

Miles didn’t waste much time punching his ticket to Bethpage in that playoff. He birdied the first hole to snatch one of the three spots.

“The playoff in the qualifier was a good playoff in that it was four players for three spots, but it’s also the worst kind of playoff because you don’t want to be the odd guy out,” he said. “It’s just tragic. The birdie there on the first hole to end it for me was really nice. It was getting dark. Plus with the other three guys, it looked like it was a high school match and then there was me, the coach.”

Kind of fitting, actually, since his primary focus is as a “coach” nowadays.

The USGA doesn’t keep such a stat, but it is believed that Miles’ 22 years between U.S. Open starts is unofficially the longest stretch in tournament history.

When he’s reminded of that number, he shakes his head and grins, looking a little embarrassed at first before beaming with pride. That’s certainly not a stat he ever wanted any part of, but since it’s his, it’s pretty darn cool.

“It’s a huge thing and I didn’t realize it until the qualifying was over,” Miles said. “Twenty-two years between U.S. Open starts. I don’t think any exempt player could do that physically, let alone mentally, so it’s pretty amazing. I don’t know if that’s the longest, but it’s pretty impressive for a guy that quit the game for five years and didn’t even own a set of clubs.”

While the Virginia Country Club membership will be pulling for the ol’ pro this week, they also have plenty of other rooting interests. John Merrick and John Mallinger -- both PGA TOUR members -- and Nationwide Tour player Peter Tomasulo are all Virginia C.C. members, who are also playing in the U.S. Open.

“Like most clubs, our place is a family of people,” Miles said. “We’re their pros and we teach them how to play golf. Then we have TOUR players who play out of the club, which is unique for an old, little country club. We’re not a resort course, or a place looking to sell real estate and to have that many great players … Paul Goydos and John Cook play there and so do Peter Tomasulo, John Merrick and John Mallinger, who are all here playing in the Open this week. And now their club pro is with them and it’s really neat. It’s pretty amazing, actually.”

Miles is also making this week pretty special for a co-worker of his too. Charlene Alfonso, 27, is one of Miles’ fellow assistant professionals back home and has come along for the trip to caddie for her friend.

“It’s unbelievable. It’s been a lot of fun to watch Mike turn on that switch to TOUR pro like he talked about,” Alfonso said. “He’s able to do that unbelievably fast. It’s been cool to learn how to dissect a golf course. The course is a lot more intricate than anything I’ve experienced before.

“There are a lot of drivers and wedges. You’re reaching the par 5s in two probably with an iron at most places, but out here you can’t play golf like that,” she added. “You’ve got to be really smart, which means paying attention all the time. You can’t -- even a little bit -- check out of one single shot, because it can easily turn into two or three more shots.”

Alfonso got a little taste of caddying on a big stage earlier this year when she looped for Miles at the Bob Hope Chrysler Classic hosted by Arnold Palmer (he missed the cut).

“You don’t get to share any sport at the highest level on the grandest stage like you do with golf,” Miles said. “Charlene caddied for me in the Bob Hope Classic. I think that was the first time she had been a part of a golf event at the highest level. It’s very different. The players are different, the competition is different, this week is even 10 times different than the Hope.”

Miles expects to play well this week, but he’s also keeping things in perspective.

“This is the U.S. Open,” he said. “This is the biggest tournament with biggest stage. If we were to go home right now it’s been a great week. But now the practice is over and I get to play in the tournament, so it makes this even better.”