Daly is, and always has been, a preemptive bottler. I wrote a column about a million years ago about Bode Miller accusing him of being the same thing. Both men enter their respective playing arenas with a long list of excuses ready - either to explain failure or make success seem even more spectacular - and in effect are therefore bottling it before they even hit a ball (or leave the gate). I used to think John Daly was a fun character and just the kind of guy the tour needed to blow the cobwebs off the stuffy traditionalists. I respected his refusal to bend to accommodate rules that, frankly, can quite often appear at best arcane and at worst completely nonsensical. But what I mistook for principle was merely belligerence; what I saw as revolution, was merely a man going round in the same pathetic circle over and over again. For what it's worth, he has been hard done by in the past. That he never got picked for a Ryder Cup team is pathetic, especially when you look at who got picked instead in the years when JD won majors. I've played this tune before, but bear with me. In 1991, Daly came from nowhere to win the final major of the season. He was the talk of the golfing world. He was the most exciting player on the planet. He hit it 10% futher than everyone else and yet had the touch of an angel around the green. He was physically imposing, psychologically unscalable and a born matchplayer. But Dave Stockton, the US Ryder Cup team captain that year, decided instead of picking Daly to pick his old (by then very old) pal Ray Floyd who mustered a less than impressive 2 points from 4 starts (losing his singles match and arguably dragged to those points he did win by his partner, Fred Couples). In 1995, having almost been written off as a freak major winner (despite finishing third in the 1993 Masters), Daly turned up in St Andrews and - possibly inspired by the fact that he had been on the winning Dunhill Cup team there two years previously - won the world's oldest championship at the world's most famous course. When it came to Ryder Cup selection time though, Lanny Wadkins decided that the man for the job would be his old pal Curtis Strange, who had missed the cut in the Open that Daly won and went on to produce a staggeringly marvellous zero points from three starts. So yeah, you could argue that he got stiffed. Or you could argue that if the Ryder Cup had meant enough to him he could have knuckled down and earned the requisite number of points during the season to get himself into the team by right. You could also argue that plenty of people get shittier breaks in life and then do a better job of coping with the hand they were dealt.
Daly is, and always has been, a preemptive bottler. And here I thought his problem, like mine, was always letting the stuff back out.
I don't understand why most people tend to coddle this guy. So he can hit the ball a long distance off the tee, big deal. What about the rest of the game? He's horrible at it, and has been for a long time. He's unprofessional, unreliable, and Butch Harmon had every right to give him the boot. Mr. Daly has long ago worn out his "benefit of the doubt" for winning 2 Majors, but is now affecting the income of other Pros. They should boot this guy back to Q School and make him earn it all over again, if he can. I kinda doubt it. Which is why he no longer belongs on the Pro Tour...
Because we want those sorts of stories, The Natural who comes from nowhere who can't possibly make it, a combination of so many faults and errors against Accepted Wisdom that his very appearance at the top levels of the sport anger the Establishment. Or maybe just 'cause he drinks beer from a can and likes boobs.
Most "party boys" aren't real golfers anyway. How many frat boys do you see with golf clubs unless they're using 'em to open beers?
he drinks beer from a can and likes boobs. That's actually a line from my resume.
What about the rest of the game? He's horrible at it, and has been for a long time. Thanks, Dave Marr, for your in-depth analysis. You don't win two majors if all you have is a big drive. Only seventy-four players in the entire history of the game have won two or more majors, so he deserves at least some respect for being part of that group. As dfleming points out above, the loss of income to other pros was their fault, not his. Because we want those sorts of stories, The Natural who comes from nowhere who can't possibly make it, a combination of so many faults and errors against Accepted Wisdom that his very appearance at the top levels of the sport anger the Establishment. Or maybe just 'cause he drinks beer from a can and likes boobs. That's it right there.
Yeah, Daly's not a horrible golfer by any means. He's just terribly inconsistent. Throughout his career, when he was on, he was incredible. Smash the ball off the tee, great touch with his short game, and he'd just walk up to the ball without studying the green, putt it, and make it. Probably due in large part to his lifestyle, though, he'd either tear it up or completely tank. But why do people want to rag on him any more than they rag on the alcoholics that work in the next cubicle over from them?
But why do people want to rag on him... Probably because Butch Harmon decided to make it public that Daly is sinking? (Again) And, like most people said here, JD is well liked. I always thought the the player/coach relationship, in any sport, is usually quite confidential. I assume that Butch has approached JD in private, only to be met with indifference, or stubbornness. Or lies, for that matter. Taking this problem to the media might be Butch's "last resort" to help JD.
I will never understand why some people are so excited to jump on such men and suggest they're losers, or failures or anything of the sort. Daly won two majors and a shitload of money on the PGA - his success there is obvious and not often equaled. The irony for me is that his committment to his job is probably most similar to the people that deride him. What - you never called in sick before when you were hungover? Never chose partying over coming in on the weekend? Ass over class? Gimme a break. Your high horse is 4 inches tall like the rest of us.
Only when you're lying down, Weedy.
But why do people want to rag on him any more than they rag on the alcoholics that work in the next cubicle over from them? I for one don't reserve my ragging for celebrities. I have no problem telling someone that they should lay off the sauce. John Daly has a problem with booze. Whether it impacts his profession, I guess I should not pass judgement. I don't idolize John Daly or even care if he plays another round of golf, but I also don't wish for him to continue on a path that, from all appearances, does not seem to be doing him any great service. I'm sure any one of us could relate a story about an alcoholic that met an untimely demise because they weren't strong enough to put down the bottle. John Daly should try not to add his name to the list. And Weedy, I would never claim that I haven't called in sick with a hangover, or perhaps partied when I should have been taking care of my responsibilities. But I grew up. Those things are a part of my past that don't get repeated. My life, in my own estimation, got better because of it. I think maybe John Daly's would too
Go ahead guys, coddle away. Stick your noses as far up his as you want. He's a "has been" that better get his shit together or he's gonna have to find another occupation. He even admits that if the Sponsor's Exemptions run out he's SOL. Hasn't made enough money at this sport you guys say he's so good at to pay the entry fees. Forget what he did yrs ago, where's the proof now. Pull your heads out boys, look at what's there instead of what used to be there... BTW, any of you smart guys want to guess at his world ranking...
Gotta love that they had a Hooter's tent at a PGA event...I can think of at least two reasons why Daly was hanging out there! Three.......if ya count the beer!!
Contemplate this: Money List $29,091 182nd Driving Distance (Yards Per) 288.2 41st Driving Accuracy 45.9% 196th Total Driving 237 152nd Greens Hit in Regulation 58.0% 180th Putting (Per Hole) 1.844 170th Sand Saves 43.2% 140th Birdies (Per Round) 3.05 126th Eagles (Holes Per) Go ahead, tell us why you would sponsor this guy...
falconrod Not everyone is a "what have you done for me lately" type of sports fan. Your stats, I'm sure, are accurate, but I won't just forget a guy's success due to stupidity. Go ahead, tell us why you would sponsor this guy... Because, as was said before, he's a likable, friendly guy and he brings fans to the events. He's made some mistakes, as we all have. You may not agree/understand it, but it is what it is.
Contemplate this: Money List $29,091 182nd Umm, falconrod, that's his 2008 money....given that we're 11 weeks into the year...he's on a pace to make $137,521 this year...you going to make that much??? He's made $10,587,149 for his career, and I'll bet he has some left. Sure, he's spent a ton on beer and Hooter's girls, and just pissed most of the rest away, but so what?
He is only eligible for tourny's this year by way of Sponsors Exemptions. Why??? A players eligbility is predicated on previous success'. And there are many ways to create those success' to warrent being able to play in a given tourny. He has no recent success', for how many yrs??? Go back to Q School and quit insulting the intregity of the Sport...
Daly's not a great golfer by PGA standards. Good, but not great. A drunk Daly could still beat a sober me on the golf course any day of the week.
What the fuck is Q School??
"What the fuck is Q School??" You're kidding, right? Q School
Like it or not, as long as he's a multiple-Major tournament champion, he's got appeal to any tournament. It's only in this day and age of everyone knowing everything about everyone's business, 24/7, that Daly's lifestyle is available for all to critique. Sure I'd like to see him get his shit together, but I'd still pay to follow him around the course. Anyone who says he's not a talented player doesn't know what they're talking about. He's just never been able to dedicate his life to practicing and improving like he could have. Thus the split with Harmon.
Q School No not kidding, just dont follow golf. And thank you crash Sir.
Go back to Q School and quit insulting the intregity of the Sport... An precisely who is inviting this guy to tourneys? Aren't they the ones insulting the integrity of the sport? Look, I'm sure Daly must have punched your dog, or the equivalent - but you're blaming him when he's pretty much played himself off the tour - yet it's the tournament organizations and sponsors that are letting him play. Hate them. Get some focus on that ol' haterade.
