Gary Player is unquestionably one of the greatest golfers ever to have graced our wonderful game.

However, Player is certainly not universally popular amongst his fellow pros and golf fans alike.

The 90-year-old South African’s often abrasive, no-nonsense attitude sometimes rubs people up the wrong way.

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He has been involved in numerous controversies during his time in the game, none more explosive than his feud with Tom Watson.

The American accused the South African of cheating during the 1983 skins game.

Then, eight years later, Player suggested that Watson should be stripped of the two majors he won in 1977 due to the fact that he was playing with illegal grooves at the time, albeit unknowingly.

However, back in 1973, Johnny Miller took umbrage with Player due to the manner in which the South African went about things during a match at Wentworth.

Why Johnny Miller once accused Gary Player of gamesmanship

In his book ‘To Be The Best’, which was released in 1991, Player explained the story behind Johnny Miller accusing him of gamesmanship at Wentworth in 1973 during the World Matchplay Championship.

Player defeated Miller 3&2 in their semi-final match before beating Graham Marsh in the final to secure his fifth and final World Matchplay title.

However, the semi-final clash with Miller did not pass without incident.

“In the semi-final of the 1973 World Matchplay championship at Wentworth, Johnny Miller accused me of gamesmanship,“ the South African said.

“He claimed that I had deliberately taken four minutes to rake a bunker just to keep him waiting as he faced an important putt. It happened on the thirteenth hole. I was in a bunker on the right-hand side and my caddie had moved across to the left. I hit the ball close and even though Johnny was waiting to putt I raked the sand. It was ignorance on my part.

“I should have asked the caddie to come over and perform the task so that we could get on with the game. But it was a spur-of-the-moment decision on my part; Johnny thought it was deliberate and I did not blame him for thinking so.

“He told the press after he lost the match: ‘If he wants to fix traps then he should not do it at my expense.’ Some years later, I said to him: You know, I never tried that to keep you waiting deliberately? And he said: Well, it sure looked like it.’ He had a point.“

According to Player, he wasn’t deliberately trying to affect Miller’s preparation for his putt, but in fairness to him, he did admit that what he did was wrong.

Gary Player was a master of matchplay

Player has an interesting view on gamesmanship during matchplay. In fact, he doesn’t believe it is actually that prevalent in the game.

However, back in 2006, the nine-time major champion commented on how experience is crucial if your opponent is trying to play mind games.

“One of the greatest misunderstandings in matchplay golf is this thing about gamesmanship,“ Player explained.

“I’ve noticed very little of it my career. But it’s about using your experience. If someone says to me, ‘Gee, this green is fast,’ and I fall for that then I deserve to lose the hole.“

But what is the secret to being a good match-player?

“My opponents knew I was like a bull terrier and I was never going to give up,“ Player once said.

“You’ve got to have great patience, but the nice thing about matchplay is you’ve got to be aggressive. In a medal round you might shoot at the middle of the green but in matchplay you can just let it rip at the flag.

“But you’ve got to play according to how you stand at the time and what your opponent does. If I’m five up with five to go then I make sure I put the ball in the middle.

“Body language is hugely important. You’ve got to let your opponent know that you’re going to be trying whether you are up or you’re down. You’ve got to size them up and watch if they are impatient and losing their temper. If they are, you’ve got to be the opposite and show how cool you are.“