John Daly

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 of a PGA Tour-affiliated event since 2004, and it happened exactly one year after he made his PGA Tour Champions debut. Daly continues to compete semi-regularly on the Champions Tour.

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 PGA of Europe.

Although Daly 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".

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 Open in 2005. 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 then 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 −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.

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.

In an interview on the Dan Patrick Show on August 6, 2014, Daly said that much of his past struggle with alcohol was due to growing up with an alcoholic and abusive father.

Sherrie (at some point) pleaded 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."

Daly's last top finish on an elite tour came at the 2009 Italian Open. There he finished in a distant tie for second to Daniel Vancsik of Argentina. It punctuated how unusual Daly's history of results had been. He recorded almost as many top finishes internationally as he did at PGA Tour events in the United States. He won two events on the South African Tour early in his career: the AECI Charity Classic and the Hollard Royal Swazi Sun Classic in 1990, an event where he had finished runner-up in 1989. Later in his career, in addition to famously winning the 1995 Open Championship in Scotland, he performed very well in regular European Tour events. He won the 2001 BMW International Open and finished runner-up at the 1994 Irish Open, 2001 German Masters, 2005 BMW International Open, and the aforementioned 2009 Italian Open. His four runner-up finishes in Europe match the amount of runner-up finishes he had at American events on the PGA Tour. He also won the 2003 Korea Open, the most prestigious event on the Korean Tour.

After his 2008 suspension, Daly was forced to compete on the European Tour. After undergoing lap-band surgery to lose 40 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 80 pounds thanks to the surgery, dropping him to 205 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.

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 100 pounds and was "a slim, trim 185".

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.

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 two-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.

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.

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." Daly's first album, My Life, included guest vocals by Darius, Willie Nelson and Johnny Lee.

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 Open Championship. 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.

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 $60 million over a 15-year period. This includes losing $1.5 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.

In 2005, Daly lost two playoffs in PGA Tour events to two of world golf's biggest stars. First, he was defeated by Vijay Singh's par on the first extra hole at the Houston Open. Then, he missed a two-foot putt on the second extra hole to lose to Tiger Woods at the WGC-American Express Championship in San Francisco.

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 three-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.

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.

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 tour. He was primarily earning PGA Tour event entries through past champion status and numerous sponsor invitations.

He was then added to the Tiger Woods PGA Tour 2004 video game in 2003. He was in the series up until 2009.

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 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 PGA Tour 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.

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 a decent season, finishing T-7 at the Shell Houston Open, and winning two other tournaments that were neither PGA Tour or European Tour events. In both 2002 and 2003, Daly was a member of the winning PGA Tour team in the Wendy's 3-Tour Challenge event, competing against teams from the Champions Tour and the LPGA Tour.

In 2001, Daly won the BMW International Open with a one-stroke lead over Padraig Harrington, with a personal best score of 27 under par for four rounds. This was the first time Daly had won a European Tour event in six 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.

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.

In 1999, Daly won the JCPenney Classic, which was neither a PGA or European Tour event. Despite this, Daly did not have a good season in 1999 where he withdrew from several tournaments and scored a high round of 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 1998, Daly recorded one of the highest scores on a single 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 1995, in the midst of a middling season, Daly unexpectedly won The Open Championship in a playoff with Italy's Costantino Rocca at the Old Course, St Andrews. Daly had had prior excellent results on this course at the Dunhill Cup, and although he was listed at very long odds by bookies, some perceptive golf watchers, including David Feherty, believed before the event that the Old Course in fact suited Daly's game very well. Daly was in contention from the start of the event, but trailed New Zealand's Michael Campbell heading into a very windy final round. Campbell fell back in the difficult conditions, and Daly played a superb final round. As Rocca, in the last group, 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 then sank a 60-foot (18 metre) putt 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" on the 17th hole, and taking three shots to get out.

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 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 1994, Daly experienced one of his most turbulent years. He was suspended by the PGA Tour, due to behavior which included walking off the course mid-round during the 1993 late-season Kapalua International. The suspension also covered a mid-1993 incident at the Kemper Open, when he was upset after scoring a 77, threw his scorecard at the scoring tent, and was disqualified. He entered alcohol rehab for three weeks in late 1993 and then returned to the Tour and won the 1994 BellSouth Classic, claiming it was his first win sober. This was his third PGA Tour title.

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.

His surprise victory and powerful swing provided the impetus for a cult-like fan base, 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 added to his reputation as a power hitter in 1993 by becoming, apparently, the first (and still the only) player to reach the green of the famous 630-yard hole 17 at Baltusrol Golf Club's Lower Course in two strokes. (Note: It was realized later that, actually, Billy Farrell (son of Johnny Farrell, a 22-time PGA Tour winner and the longtime head pro at Baltusrol) had reached this green in two shots during the 1967 U.S. Open held there.)

Daly did not 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.

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 in 82nd place. However, he recovered to win the B.C. Open by six strokes late in the season, for his second PGA Tour title.

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.

Daly is known primarily for his driving distance off the tee (earning him the nickname "Long John"), his non-country club appearance and attitude, his exceptionally long backswing, the inconsistency of his play (with some exceptional performances and some controversial incidents), and his 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.

He joined the PGA Tour in 1991, showed increasingly strong play throughout the year, and then won the PGA Championship that August. 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. Daly, playing just his third major, was able to have Price's caddie Jeff (Squeaky) Medlin caddy for him. Daly had to drive through the night to arrive in time to claim his spot. A virtual unknown at the time, he achieved a first-round score of 69, even though he had not had time to play a practice round at the exceptionally difficult Crooked Stick Golf Club course near Indianapolis. He finished the tournament with scores of 69-67-69-71, giving him a three-stroke victory over veteran Bruce Lietzke, who was 15 years older. His feat generated enormous media coverage, propelling the hitherto virtually unknown Tour rookie to international fame. Late in the season, Daly became the first PGA Tour rookie to be invited to compete in the Skins Game, a made-for-television event featuring four top players, and he performed well there. Daly was subsequently named PGA Tour Rookie of the Year for 1991. He was also the first rookie to win a major title since Jerry Pate won the U.S. Open in 1976.

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.

He earned full playing privileges on the Ben Hogan Tour (now the Korn Ferry Tour) for 1990, winning the qualifying tournament for the new circuit early that year. He then won two Sunshine Tour events early in 1990, one in South Africa (where he edged David Feherty), and one in Swaziland (where established veteran champion John Bland placed second). This was encouraging for Daly to win good-caliber events, defeat more experienced and well-established international professionals, and play before good-sized galleries which appreciated his performances.

He then won the 1990 Ben Hogan Utah Classic, and completed a fine year by finishing T-12 at the 1990 PGA Tour Qualifying Tournament, earning 1991 PGA Tour privileges on his fourth attempt.

Daly left college without completing his degree, and turned professional in summer 1987. His first pro victory came shortly afterwards, in the 1987 Missouri Open. From 1987 to 1989, Daly played mainly in minor events around the U.S., and had some encouraging success in South Africa in early 1989, where he challenged in several Sunshine Tour events. He also played in several PGA Tour events with some success, including finishing T-14 at the 1989 Chattanooga Classic, and making his first cut in a major, finishing T-69 at the 1989 U.S. Open.

Daly attended the University of Arkansas, from 1984 to 1987, on a golf scholarship, and was a member of the golf team. His golf team coaches were Steve Loy and Bill Woodley, and Daly had tempestuous relationships with both, due to his drinking problems and infrequent class attendance. Daly qualified for the 1986 U.S. Open, one of the four majors of male professional golf, as an amateur, and missed the 36-hole cut with scores of 88 and 76.

John then attended Helias High School in Jefferson City, Missouri, the state capital, from the middle of his grade ten year, and was a junior golf member at the Jefferson City Country Club. He was a letterman there in football and golf. With John handling both punting and place-kicking duties, Helias football compiled a 10-0 record in 1983. In golf, John was a 1983 Missouri state team HS champion with Helias; he also holds several Helias school kicking records in football.

For his first significant golf success, Daly won the 1983 Missouri State Amateur Championship, and then followed up by winning the 1984 Arkansas State Amateur Championship. Daly completed his final three months of high school at Dardanelle High School in spring 1984. Back at the Bay Ridge club that summer, Daly became friends with Rick Ross, who was a golf teaching professional there, and Ross assisted him with his golf game for the next several years.

According to official performance statistics kept since 1980, Daly in 1997 became the first PGA Tour player to average more than 300 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.

John Patrick Daly (born April 28, 1966) is an American professional golfer on the PGA Tour.

Daly is the only man from either Europe or the United States to win two major golf championships but not be selected for the Ryder Cup, since that event began in 1927.