The Highs and Lows of John Daly

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John Daly is known for his colourful personality – and wardrobe! – on and off the golf course. But the big-hitting man with the long backswing has experienced some of the biggest highs and lows in life, making him an interesting character.

Everyone has their favourite John Daly moment. Is yours listed here?

The 1991 PGA Championship

Daly won the 1991 PGA Championship as a nobody in golf. The 25-year-old only qualified for the competition due to some fortune and other golfers having to pull out. In fact, he was listed as the ninth reserve for taking part at one point. But Daly won the major in spectacular “smash-it” style that instantly won over golf fans.

During the tournament, one fan was struck by lightning and killed. Daly donated some of his winnings to the fan’s family, putting two of the children through college. One of which went on to qualify as a doctor.

Gambling Addiction

Daly is known to hit it as hard as possible off the tee, which is why he holds records for the longest average drives on multiple tour years. But hitting it hard shows an element of risk to how he plays golf. This same love of taking risks has been a problem in his life off the course, namely through a gambling addiction.

For most of us, playing slot machines and table games can be a lot of fun without any danger of it becoming addictive. But for Daly, it did become an issue. 

Thankfully, Daly recognised his personal problem with gambling and has sought help to overcome the addiction. Since losing an estimated $50 million over 15 years, he is now on the right track. The same can be said about other addictions he’s faced, such as alcoholism. 

Success Outside of Golf

John Daly is more than an overswinging golfer. The big man has had success outside of the PGA Tour. Not everyone knows that he owns a company responsible for designing golf courses, a bit like a golf course architects company.

And even fewer people realise that John Daly is a musician. He has had deals to release two albums to date. And although they never featured near the top of the charts, they were mostly well-received by his fans.

Family breakdowns

If you thought his trousers were colourful, Daly’s family life is just as colourful. He has been married to four different women and has children with three of them. His second wife claimed that Daly had beaten her, which Daly denies in his autobiography. However, his fourth wife was sentenced to jail for attacking Daly, which also gave him custody of their son.

John Daly remains one of the most exciting and fun golfers on tour. At the time of writing, he is in second place on a tour event – still got it!

 

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