Any excuse to run the outstanding picture on the left of PGA Tour golfer John Daly, eh?
Although a winner of two majors (1991 PGA and 1995 British Open) over a decade ago, Daly has won only golf tournament in the past 11 years. Nevertheless, he remains one of the most popular and colorful members of the PGA Tour. Married four times with periodic alcohol problems, a big heart and a reality television show to his credit, Daly is one of those larger-than-life characters who seem to attract many of the same folks who watch auto races in anticipation of the crashes.
This week, Daly raised more than a few eyebrows around the rather staid PGA Tour as a result of being the subject of a rather odd promotional campaign for his new autobiography, My Life In and Out of the Rough (HarperCollins 2006), which hits the stores on Monday. The promotional campaign is highlighting Daly’s wild days and nights on the PGA Tour and, according to this Mike Bianchi/Orlando Sentinel review, the book is not for the fainthearted. After reading Daly’s description of various sexual exploits, Bianchi notes:
It’s always amazed me why Daly is so beloved among sports fans when he is 10 times more corrupt than Terrell Owens, Barry Bonds and Ricky Williams combined. I guess it pays to be a good ol’ boy white golfer.
Meanwhile, most of the media coverage focused on the gambling habit that Daly claims in the book has cost him between $50 million and $60 million. Daly’s gambling revelations garnered so much publicity during the week that former NBA basketball star Charles Barkley was prompted to remind folks that he, too, is a character in that he had lost $10 million or so at the gaming tables. To top it all off, Daly will be the subject of the seemingly obligatory segment during this Sunday’s 60 Minutes show on CBS.