John Patrick Daly (born April 28, 1966) is an American professional golfer on the PGA Tour.
Daly is known primarily for his driving distance off the tee (earning him the nickname "Long John"), his non-country club appearance and attitude, and his rough-and-tumble personal life. His two greatest on course accomplishments are his "zero to hero" victory in the 1991 PGA Championship, and his playoff victory over Costantino Rocca in the 1995 Open Championship.
According to official performance statistics kept since 1980, Daly in 1997 became the first PGA Tour player to average more than 300Â yards per drive over a full season. He did so again in every year from 1999 to 2008, and he was the only player to do so until 2003.
Daly's last PGA Tour victory came in San Diego in 2004, earning him a two-year playing exemption. After 2006, Daly's career began to falter and he had trouble making cuts and staying on the PGA Tour. He was primarily earning entry through past champion status and numerous sponsor invitations.
Daly is the only man from either Europe or the United States to win two major golf championships but not participate in the Ryder Cup.
Daly has been successful in multiple businesses. He is endorsed by LoudMouth Golf Apparel and owns a golf course design company. In addition, Daly has written and recorded music and released two music albums.
Early life, family, and education
John Daly Hits Golf Ball Off Of Beer Can While Barefoot, Smoking - Two-time major winner John Daly is known for his off the course antics as much as his success on the links. NESN.com's Michaela Vernava explains why Daly was the fan favorite once again while...
Daly was born in Carmichael, California. With his father, mother, older sister and older brother, he moved from California to Dardanelle, Arkansas when he was four, and he began playing golf the following year. He attended Helias High School in Jefferson City, Missouri, and was a letterman in football and golf. In golf, he was a Missouri state champion and holds several kicking records in football. He attended the University of Arkansas, where he was a member of the golf team. He left college before completing his degree.
Golf career
1986â€"90
Daly played in the 1986 U.S Open as an amateur and missed the cut with an opening round 88. He then turned professional in 1987, and his first pro victory came in the 1987 Missouri Open. In 1989, Daly played in several PGA Tour events including finishing T-14 at the Chattanooga Classic and making his first cut in a major finishing T-69 at the 1989 U.S Open. He won the Ben Hogan Utah Classic in 1990 and finished T-12 at the PGA Tour Qualifying Tournament; he also won two South African Sunshine Tour pro events that year.
1991 PGA Championship win
He joined the PGA Tour in 1991 and won the PGA Championship that year. This victory gained Daly a significant amount of media attention, due to the fact that Daly was the ninth and final alternate for the Championship. Just days before the tournament Nick Price dropped out since his wife Sue was about to give birth. The eight other alternates could not make it to Crooked Stick Golf Club in time for the tournament. Daly, playing just his third major, was able to have Price's caddy Jeff (Squeaky) Medlin caddy for him. A virtual unknown at the time, he parlayed this opportunity into a first-round score of 69, even though he hadn't had time to play a practice round on the difficult Crooked Stick course. He finished the tournament with scores of 69-67-69-71, giving him a three-stroke victory over Bruce Lietzke. Daly was subsequently named PGA Tour Rookie of the Year. He was also the first rookie to win a major title since Jerry Pate won the U.S. Open in 1976.
His surprise victory and powerful swing provided the impetus for a cult-like fanbase, composed of many people who had not been previously attracted to golf, and from that point onwards, Daly became one of the most popular players on Tour. He won the B.C. Open in 1992 and the BellSouth Classic in 1994. He added to his reputation as a power hitter in 1993 by becoming the first (and still the only) player to reach the green of the famous 630-yard hole 17 at Baltusrol Golf Club in two strokes.
1992
Daly came into the 1992 PGA Tour season winning the B.C. Open with a six stroke lead, Daly had a good season in 1992 with several top 10 finishes including finishing 5th place at The International, T-2 at the Kemper Open, and T-8 at the Buick Southern Open and the Nissan Los Angeles Open. At the 1992 PGA Championship, Daly struggled as the defending champion. He finished the tournament with rounds of 76-72-79-77 and ended up finishing 82nd place.
1993
Daly didn't have a great season in 1993. He did however finish T-3 at the Masters Tournament and it became his only top-10 finish in a major championship outside his two wins. With no PGA Tour wins in 1993, Daly did manage to win the Alfred Dunhill Cup with Fred Couples and Payne Stewart. He had five top-25 finishes and one top-10 finish out of 15 cuts.
1994
In 1994 Daly experienced one of his worst years when he was suspended by the PGA Tour due to behavior including walking off the course during the Kapalua International and a mid-1993 incident at the Kemper Open when he was upset after scoring a 77 and threw his scorecard at the scoring tent and was disqualified. He entered alcohol rehab for three weeks somewhere around 1993â€"94 and he won the 1994 BellSouth Classic claiming it was his first win sober.
1995 Open Championship win
In 1995, Daly unexpectedly won The Open Championship in a playoff with Italian Costantino Rocca at St Andrews. As Rocca approached the final hole, he was one shot behind Daly who had already finished his round. Rocca's long drive was only yards from the green, but his second shot resulted in a fluffed chip where he did not follow through. Rocca sank a 60Â foot (18Â metre) putt on the 18th at St Andrews to make the birdie he needed to force a playoff with Daly. Daly easily defeated Rocca in the playoff finishing the four holes of the playoff at one under par, while Rocca finished three over par after hitting into the "Road Hole Bunker" and taking three shots to get out. Daly is the only eligible two-time major winner never selected to play in the Ryder Cup.
1996â€"2003
After winning the 1995 Open Championship, Daly struggled with his golf game and drinking habits for the next nine years. In 1996, Daly finished T-19 at The Players Championship and had a top-10 finish at the Kemper Open. At the 1996 U.S. Open, Daly finished T-27 with a second round 69 which was his best finish in the tournament. In 1997 Daly withdrew from the 1997 U.S. Open after a first round 77 citing shakes from alcohol and exhaustion. It is reported that Daly was attending the Alcoholics Anonymous meetings. Daly also withdrew from the 1997 Players Championship.
In 1998, Daly shot the highest score on one hole in PGA Tour golf history shooting an 18 on the sixth hole at the Bay Hill Invitational. Daly finished the 1998 season with two top-10 finishes, He also withdrew from the Sprint International and the Disney Classic and was disqualified from the FedEx St. Jude Classic.
In 1999, Daly won the JCPenney Classic which was neither a PGA or European Tour event. Despite this Daly didn't have a good season in 1999 where he withdrew from several tournaments and scored a career-high 82 at the Memorial Tournament. At the 1999 U.S. Open, Daly finished 68th place after leading the tournament in the first round. After some struggles during the tournament, Daly said he would never play in the U.S. Open again; he later apologized for this. In 2000, Daly had a bad season withdrawing from the U.S. Open with 12-over-par.
In 2001, Daly won the BMW International Open with a 1 stroke lead over Padraig Harrington. This was the first time Daly won a European Tour event in 6 years. After Daly had a comeback to the European Tour, he also had his best PGA Tour season since 1995. His best result was finishing 4th place at the Bell Canadian Open. In 2002, Daly was inducted into the Arkansas Golf Hall of Fame and had two top-10 finishes on the PGA Tour. He made the cut at the 2002 Masters finishing T-32, the last time he would make the cut at the Masters. He also won the Champions Challenge that year which was neither a PGA or European Tour event. In 2003, Daly had an alright season finishing T-7 at the Shell Houston Open and winning 2 other tournaments that were neither PGA Tour or European Tour events. He was then added to the Tiger Woods PGA Tour 2004 video game in 2003. He was in the series up until 2009.
Comeback
Daly won the Buick Invitational in 2004, and he was also selected as PGA Tour Comeback Player of the Year for 2004. Daly won the golf tournament in a playoff against Luke Donald and Chris Riley. Daly started using Dunlop golf equipment before this tournament, and the Buick Invitational was his first victory in 189 events. Daly also increased his world golf ranking from 299th to a spot in the Top 50 during this time frame. Statistically he ranked 4th overall on the PGA tour for 2004. However, Daly did not win another professional tournament until December 2014, when he won the Beko Classic by one shot. The tournament, played at Gloria Golf Club in Belek, Antalya, Turkey, is sanctioned by the PGAs of Europe.
Non-exempt status since 2007
Daly entered the 2007 PGA Tour season without full exempt status for the first time since his 1991 PGA Championship victory, which carried a 10-year PGA Tour exemption. Another such exemption was earned with his 1995 Open Championship win. When Daly won the 2004 Buick Invitational, he earned a 2-year exemption, which expired at the end of 2006. Daly finished 193rd on the 2006 PGA Tour Official Money List, thereby losing his full exempt status for 2007.
Although Daly has had $10,116,306 in career earnings as of June 2, 2014, he is not among the top 50 on the PGA Tour's All-Time Career Money List, and so he must now depend heavily on sponsor invitations (PGA Tour Exemption Category 11). Some 2007 PGA Tour events extended such invitations. Outside of sponsor invitations, Daly can also play in many 2007 regular events via Exemption Category 32, "Past Champions, Team Tournament Winners and Veteran Members Beyond 150 on Money List".
As far as individual tournaments are concerned, Daly is exempt for life in the PGA Championship and AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro-Am, and up to age 60 in the British Open. In order to play in the Masters, U.S. Open, a World Golf Championship or a FedEx Cup Playoff Event, Daly would have to satisfy the particular invitational requirements of such events. Daly has not played at the Masters since 2006, and he has not made the cut there since 2002, even though Augusta National golf course was made for players with his talents.
Fans and golf columnists point to the 2005 WGC-American Express Championship as the event where John Daly's post-2006 exempt status would be determined. Tied with Tiger Woods at the end of regulation play, Daly missed a short par putt on the 2nd extra playoff hole, giving Woods the victory. Had Daly instead made the par, and then had gone on to win, he would have earned a 3-year PGA Tour exemption through 2008. Daly also made it to another playoff in the 2005 Shell Houston Open, but lost on the first extra hole to Vijay Singh.
Daly was invited to play in the Honda Classic on March 1, 2007 on a sponsor's exemption, but had to withdraw after two holes. He pulled a muscle near his shoulder blade when he tried to stop his backswing after a fan snapped a picture. In December 2008, he was suspended for six months by the PGA Tour.
After his 2008 suspension, Daly was forced to compete on the European Tour. After undergoing lap-band surgery to lose 40Â pounds, he began playing much better golf, even managing to finish 2nd at the Italian Open. On May 26, 2009, Daly announced that he would return to the PGA Tour, via sponsor's exemption, for the St. Jude Classic. On July 17, Daly told The Dan Patrick Show that he had lost 80Â pounds thanks to the surgery, dropping him to 205Â lbs.
However, after shooting a then personal-high 88 at the Buick Open in late July 2009, he claimed to be losing confidence in his game, and his swing coach blamed the surgery for making him lose muscle along with weight, taking power away from his swing. However, Daly blamed the effects of his poor eyesight on his putting for his high golf score.
On March 14, 2014, during the second round of the Valspar Championship, Daly shot a career worst 90 which included an 8-over-par 12 on the 16th hole. His frequent failure to make cuts and high rounds have revived debates on players who frequently receive sponsor exemptions.
Daly shot a score of 68 for the first round of the 2012 PGA Championship which was played at Kiawah Island, South Carolina. Daly finished 18th place in that tournament, which was the first time Daly had finished in the top 20 in a major championship since the British Open in 2005. At 47 years of age, Daly can still hit drives as long as anybody on the PGA Tour. However, Daly continues to play more abroad vs. United States due to his limited status on the PGA Tour. In the late fall of 2014 Daly started to show some promise finishing T-29 at the Sanderson Farms Championship and quietly finishing T-10 at the Puerto Rico Open, his first top-10 finish in three years. Soon after, Daly finished T-25 at the Turkish Airlines Open, a European Tour event with a strong field. Daly won the Beko Classic on December 6, 2014, an event sanctioned by the PGAs of Europe, finishing at âˆ'15. It was Daly's first win in over 10 years. At the end of 2015, Daly tried to get back his European Tour card in Shanghai. He finished T-46 at the BMW Masters and T-50 at the Turkish Airlines Open.
Having turned 50 on April 28, 2016, Daly became eligible to play on the PGA Tour Champions. His debut was at the Insperity Invitational in May, where he finished tied for 17th. On May 7, 2017, Daly won the Insperity Invitational on the PGA Tour Champions after shooting a 14-under par for the tournament. It was his first win during a PGA Tour event since 2004 and it happened exactly one year after he made his PGA Tour Champions debut.
Golf swing
Daly has a flowing self-taught golf swing which was built for raw power and distance. Daly takes his golf club back much farther past parallel on his back swing by extreme coiling of his arms and shoulders which creates very fast club head speed on his down swing. However, Daly's golf swing has contributed to his inconsistent performance during golf tournaments since almost perfect timing is required for proper execution of such a powerful golf swing.
Incidents during golf tournaments
Daly has had several incidents during golf tournaments which have contributed to his "Wild Thing" image including the following:
- During the 1998 PGA Tour's Bay Hill Invitational, Daly used a three-wood to hit six golf balls into the water during the final round. Daly finally got his seventh attempt over the water which was a distance of approximately 270Â yards. Daly shot an 18 on the par-five sixth hole and finished the round with a score of 85.
- In the 2000 U.S. Open, he shot a 14 on the par-five 18th hole and withdrew after an opening-round 83. Daly hit three golf balls into the Pacific Ocean and hit another into a backyard next to the fairway.
- In 2002, after making a triple-bogey seven on his last hole at the Coolum course in Australia, Daly threw his putter and ball into a pond and later failed to sign for a 78 on his scorecard, disqualifying himself from the tournament. Daly was later fined by the Australian Tour and was ordered to write a letter of apology to a tour official he verbally abused.
- During the 2008 Australian Open, he broke a spectator's camera at Royal Sydney's ninth hole. He was given a suspended fine by Golf Australia.
- Daly walked off during his first round at the 2011 Australian Open after hitting all of his golf balls into the water. Daly's problems started on the 10th hole when he received an automatic two-stroke penalty for hitting the wrong ball in the bunker. On the 11th hole, he hit seven golf balls in the water before leaving the tournament.
- In the second round of the 2015 PGA Championship at the Whistling Straits Golf Course in Haven, Wisconsin, Daly, who was at the time 1-over par right at the cut line, hit three consecutive tee shot attempts into the water of Lake Michigan at the par-3 7th hole. He used a 4-iron on the first unsuccessful try, then switched to a 6-iron on the next two failed tries. After his fourth attempt (his 7th shot), which found the green, Daly was so livid about his shot selection that he threw his 6-iron into Lake Michigan. Daly ended up scoring a septuple-bogey 10, dropping to +8. He finished the round with an 82 and missed the cut.
Charity works
After winning the PGA Championship at Crooked Stick Golf Club in 1991, Daly gave $30,000 to the family of a man who died during the tournament due to lightning strike. The money was used by the family to pay college expenses for the man's two daughters. Daly was just starting his golf career and was not wealthy at the time.
Daly is known for his involvement in many charities including several in northwest Arkansas. He has donated money to his high school, the Make-A-Wish Foundation, and Boys and Girls Clubs of America. Daly is also an active supporter of the sports programs at the University of Arkansas. He shaved his signature "mullet", and donated the proceeds from the event to various charities. Daly regularly plays in the celebrity Pro-Am Monday after the Masters hosted by his friends, Hootie & the Blowfish.
Businesses
Daly is in partnership with Loudmouth Golf line of clothing, which includes licensing deals with the NFL's Dallas Cowboys and Arkansas Razorbacks. Sales continue to increase making it difficult to meet demand. In October 2014, Daly signed an endorsement deal with Rock Bottom Golf, a discount golf retailer. In 2006, Daly launched a wine label John Daly Wines, now defunct.
Daly also has a company which designs golf courses (JD Designs), including Sevillano Links at Rolling Hills Casino in Corning, California. Sevillano Links is one of the few links style golf courses in the Western United States, and named "Best New Golf Course" by Golfweek magazine. Other golf courses that John Daly helped design include:
- Wicked Stick Golf Links, Myrtle Beach, South Carolina
- Blarney Golf Resort, County Cork, Ireland
- Thundering Waters Golf Club, Niagara Falls, Ontario, Canada
- Murder Rock Golf Club, Branson, Missouri
- The Lion's Den, Dardanelle, Arkansas
Video game
In 2010, publisher Oxygen Games released John Daly's Prostroke Golf for the Xbox 360, PS3, and PC. In the game, John Daly is the instructor, as well as the opponent, for players. The game includes twelve courses modeled after real-world courses, but these are locked at the outset. In order to unlock courses, players must defeat Daly in Challenges, including driving, short game, and putting. Unlocking a course allows the player to play against Daly and other players in tournaments.
Music career
In 2007, Daly provided back-up vocals in the Kid Rock song, "Half Your Age". In April 2010, Daly released his second music album called I Only Know One Way on Long Ball Records/Hopesong Digital/GMV Nashville. He wrote and co-wrote eight tracks on the album. One track includes Hootie And The Blowfish's lead singer Darius Rucker and a cover of Bob Dylan's "Knockin' On Heaven's Door". John said about his perspective on his music: "The album itself is really my life. All of the songs have a meaning. Most of the record is happening or has happened in my life. I hope people can relate to some of the troubles I have had along the way. Everyone around the world has problems, and I want to connect with those people." John's first album, My Life, included guest vocals by Darius, Willie Nelson and Johnny Lee.
Studio albums
Singles
Other appearances
Personal life
Alcohol
In March 2008, Daly's swing coach Butch Harmon quit, saying that "the most important thing in (Daly's) life is getting drunk." Daly responded by saying "I think his lies kind of destroyed my life for a little bit."
On October 26, 2008, Daly was taken into protective custody by Winston-Salem police after being found drunk outside a Hooters restaurant. Daly was not arrested or charged with a violation. However, the police released his mug shot to the media which resulted in negative publicity. Shortly after this incident, Daly committed to stop drinking alcohol, which resulted in a progressive resurgence of his game and a positive change in his personal life; this was confirmed by Daly himself at the Open on July 15, 2010.
In an interview on the Dan Patrick Show on August 6, 2014, Daly acknowledged that much of his past struggle with alcohol was due to growing up with an alcoholic and abusive father.
Health
In July 1994, Daly claimed that many PGA golfers were cocaine users, and said that if drug testing was done properly on tour, he would be "one of the cleanest guys out there". This statement brought an uproar among the pro golf community.
In early 2009 he had lap-band surgery which limits the amount of food that he can consume. As of December 8, 2009, Daly had shed well over 100Â pounds and was "a slim, trim 185".
Gambling
In 2006, Daly revealed in the last chapter of his autobiography that he has had great difficulty with a gambling problem. He claims to have lost between US$50 and $60Â million over the past 15 years. This includes losing $1.5Â million in October 2005, after winning half that amount at the WGC-American Express tournament, most of it lost on a $5,000 Las Vegas slot machine at Wynn Casino.
Marriages
In summer 1992, he married Bettye Fulford. They had a daughter, Shynah Hale. In December 1992, Daly was charged with third-degree assault for throwing his second wife Bettye into a wall at their home near Denver. The actual circumstances of the incident remained unclear so far as public releases were concerned, since Bettye did not wish to pursue the matter. Daly has said in his autobiography that he did not, nor has he ever, hit or hurt a woman.
On July 29, 2001, he married Sherrie Miller. Their son John Patrick Daly II was born July 23, 2003. On June 8, 2007, Daly and Sherrie got into a fight at a restaurant in Memphis, Tennessee, site of that week's tour stop, the Stanford St. Jude Championship. Daly claims that later that night his wife attacked him with a steak knife. He showed up for his second round on Friday afternoon with cuts and scrapes across his face. Authorities were contacted by him and came to his house, but his wife had already fled the scene and taken their children with her.
Sherrie (at some point) pled guilty to federal drug charges and was sentenced to a five-month prison term. On December 17, 2010 in Memphis, Circuit Court Judge Donna Fields awarded custody of the couple's seven-year-old son, "little John" to Daly, and jailed Sherrie for interfering with Daly's court-ordered visitation rights and other failures to abide by the court's orders in their ongoing divorce proceeding, saying “She is not following this court's orders. That is criminal contempt.â€
Lawsuits
In 2005 Daly sued the Florida Times-Union for libel after a columnist claimed Daly "failed the scoundrel sniff test." A judge threw out the case in 2009, saying that Daly had failed to prove the basis of the libel claim: namely, that the statements were untrue. Daly was also ordered by a judge to pay the newspaper over $300,000 in legal fees.
Professional wins (18)
PGA Tour wins (5)
PGA Tour playoff record (2â€"2)
European Tour wins (3)
Asian Tour wins (1)
Ben Hogan Tour wins (1)
Sunshine Tour wins (2)
- 1990 AECI Charity Classic, Hollard Royal Swazi Sun Open
Other wins (7)
- 1987 Missouri Open
- 1999 JCPenney Classic (with Laura Davies)
- 2002 Champions Challenge (with Pat Perez)
- 2003 Callaway Golf Pebble Beach Invitational
- 2006 Telus Skins Game
- 2007 Telus Skins Game
- 2014 Beko Classic (sanctioned by PGAs of Europe)
PGA Tour Champions wins (1)
Major championships
Wins (2)
1 Defeated Rocca in four-hole playoff: Daly (4-3-4-4=15), Rocca (5-4-7-3=19)
Results timeline
CUT = missed the half way cut
WD = withdrew
"T" indicates a tie for a place.
Summary
- Most consecutive cuts made â€" 7 (1992 Open Championship â€" 1994 Masters)
- Longest streak of top-10s â€" 1 (three times)
U.S. national team appearances
- Alfred Dunhill Cup: 1993 (winners), 1998, 2000
- World Cup: 1998
- Wendy's 3-Tour Challenge (representing PGA Tour): 1995, 2001, 2002 (winners), 2003 (winners), 2004, 2005
See also
- 1990 PGA Tour Qualifying School graduates
- List of golfers with most PGA Tour wins
- Monday Night Golf
References
External links
- Official website
- John Daly at the PGA Tour official site
- John Daly at the European Tour official site
- John Daly at the Official World Golf Ranking official site
- John Daly book excerpt (Official publisher web page)
