Loved movie except the scene . . .

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Guys, the point here is not whether he deserved it. The punch is definetely out of place for this movie. He could've make a small effective speech which would make him feel guilty and the others for mocking him like that. This would fit a lot much more to this movie.
Besides the punch was so cliche aside from it being out of place .Unfortunately a bad decision from director.

Yeah, it was out of character. But I guess it showed that even the nicest guy in the world can eventually get fed up. I kind of saw part of David's character motivation, more than just love for his dad (especially since his dad wasn't really that great of a guy), was a lack of patience for meanness. It seemed like he was taking the whole journey not only to settle his dad down, but to confront the company that fooled him into thinking he'd won a million dollars. It also always bothered him that Keach had basically stolen his dad's air compressor. It didn't matter that his dad didn't really need it -- David just didn't like somebody taking something from somebody else. And he'd get into it with his mom a little for embarrassing his dad. So, I think when he saw Keach's really hateful mockery, the whole thing was just too mean-spirited for a guy like him to stand.

But, the punch was still a bit over the top...

I didn't feel sorry for the "poor old man" one bit.

The Stacy Keach character could have kicked David's a$$.

Agree with the OP. Hitting the old guy was not true for the character, besides him being in his 70s. As to people on here that say he deserved it, oh my. Just because people are jerks, doesn't mean it's okay to punch them. And as for calling his mom a bitch, she would have laughed and given it right back to the guy. That's the proper response, not violence.
No way David doesn't land in jail for that move.

I disagree. This was the pivotal scene in the movie. It's a film about getting older and the legacy you leave behind. Woody talks about wanting to leave something behind for his sons, but I'm not sure he was entirely talking about money- I think Woody spent most of his life getting walked all over by people and I don't think he wanted that for his sons. Many times throughout the film, you could see David as Woody in about 20 years, his mom event says "if you're not careful, you're going to end up like him"- the moment where David stands up to the aggressor is when you realize that the future is not a fatalistic outcome.

I completely agree with you that violence against an old man is completely unjustified, but this is an element of black comedy, not unlike David's mom lifting her dress up in front of the grave stone, it's absurd, crude, and funny.

My least favorite quality of this film, instead, is that it is in black and white. It's so pretentious "look how artsy I am, making a film in black and white". Eye rolls galore.