This is the parable of the president and the putt.

It was Monday morning in Washington and President Trump was in the Roosevelt Room of the White House, signing one more executive order before departing for his expedition to the Middle East. Over the weekend, news had broken about his plan to accept a $400 million plane from Qatar to use as Air Force One. Questions abounded.

This luxurious gift from the Qataris presented all sorts of concerns — ethical, legal, logistical, mechanical. There was also the fact that Mr. Trump had once described Qatar as a “funder of terrorism at a very high level.” Even some of his dearest supporters were concerned. “We cannot accept a $400 million ‘gift’ from jihadists in suits,” Laura Loomer, a far-right activist whose advice the president has occasionally heeded, wrote on social media. “This is really going to be such a stain on the admin if this is true.”

Mr. Trump was having none of it.

“They’re giving us a free jet,” he said. “I could say, ‘No, no, no, don’t give us, I want to pay you a billion, or $400 million,’ or whatever it is. Or, I could say, ‘Thank you very much.’”

He paused. Something had occurred to him. All this preciousness over the plane reminded him of something he had heard once and never forgotten. It was just a little thing, really, and he said it almost as an aside. But it told so much about Mr. Trump and the way he sees the world.

“There was an old golfer named Sam Snead,” he said. “Did you ever hear of him?”

Robert F. Kennedy Jr., Dr. Mehmet Oz, the chief of staff Susie Wiles and a smattering of other presidential aides in the room looked up at their boss, perhaps unsure where he was heading.

Old Sam Snead “had a motto,” Mr. Trump continued. “When they give you a putt, you say, ‘Thank you very much.’ You pick up your ball, and you walk to the next hole. A lot of people are stupid. They say, ‘No, no, I insist on putting it.’ Then they putt it, they miss it, and their partner gets angry at them.”