San Francisco Chronicle - (Sunday)
Former Miss America back in fray at Pebble Beach
PEBBLE BEACH — Miss America, meet Clint Eastwood.
San Francisco resident Kira K. Dixon (formerly Kazantsev), a Las LomasWalnut Creek alum who was named Miss America in 2015, is back at the AT&T ProAm after making her debut last year. This week’s highlight: teaming with Eastwood, the 89yearold actor and director, in a fivehole charity event Wednesday at Pebble Beach.
“It was the most legendary thing I’ve ever done,” Dixon said, smiling. “He was so sweet. He said, ‘C’mon, gorgeous, let’s see it.’ It was amazing. He looked at one shot and said, ‘That was very respectable.’ I said, ‘Thank you, Clint.’ ”
Dixon, an avid golfer who played at Walnut Creek Intermediate and Las Lomas, now spends much of her time in the broadcast world. She hosts “Golf Advisor Living,” a lifestyle show on Golf Channel, and contributed to the network’s coverage of the recent PGA Show in Orlando. Dixon, 28, also does work for the USGA.
She’s one of the few women in the amateur field, so she understands the impact she can have on kids. One 8yearold girl named Caroline followed Dixon around Monterey Peninsula’s Shore Course on Friday, shouting encouragement.
“When I was 8, I didn’t go to events like this and see women playing,” Dixon said. “So I talked to her and said, ‘Golf is cool, right?’ And she says, ‘Yeah, I love golf!’ To have that passion burning for little Caroline is great, so she can grow up and do this, too.”
As for her golf game, Dixon, a 16handicap, insisted she’s not as intimidated by the galleries as she was last year. Even so, she’s fighting her swing, like so many amateurs do.
“I’ve been practicing a lot, and I think it’s kind of backfiring a bit,” Dixon said. “I’m so in my head about every single thing. But I think I’m generally a better golfer this year, so I’m happy about that.”