What do you think of John Daly?

[sirsteveo55]

I really have always been a fan of John Daly. He might not have ever even been close to being a good person or role model but I think he overcame a lot. I watched the ESPN 30 for 30 on him and I thought it was a good show. I then saw this article in golf digest which I linked below. The article kind of erked me the wrong way, I kinda felt it was written by a hater. I know the author has been around awhile and has a lot of credibility. I was just interest to see how everyone else felt about him. Do you think he overcame a lot, or was just lucky, or how do you think of him?

Golf Digest John Daly Article 

[jsgolfer]

I've always been a fan.  He has more demons than most, but when he wants to play, he's damn good and fun to watch.  And he was Tin Cup before there was Tin Cup.

[woodzie264]

2 minutes ago, jsgolfer said:

I've always been a fan.  He has more demons than most, but when he wants to play, he's damn good and fun to watch.  And he was Tin Cup before there was Tin Cup.

Agreed... Good analogy

[jamo]

Not really a fan.

[iacas]

Just now, jamo said:

Not really a fan.

Ditto.

Demons, fine, whatever. I don't like to see the talent wasted, and I don't like a lot of his on-course behavior.

[Hacker James]

At least he is fairly open about it, does not really make excuses (usually), he has toned it down quite a bit. There is good in the man. 

[woodzie264]

5 minutes ago, Hacker James said:

At least he is fairly open about it, does not really make excuses (usually), he has toned it down quite a bit. There is good in the man. 

Agreed

[WUTiger]

31 minutes ago, jsgolfer said:

I've always been a fan.  He has more demons than most, but when he wants to play, he's damn good and fun to watch.  And he was Tin Cup before there was Tin Cup.

He's very human. An excellent golfer, but flawed behaviorally.

From what's I've seen the last couple of years, JD has realized that life and golf "is what it is." No complaints about the past, just do it.

[Gunther]

Great dude, I'm a big fan, notwithstanding his flaws.  We all got em.

[sirsteveo55]

45 minutes ago, Hacker James said:

At least he is fairly open about it, does not really make excuses (usually), he has toned it down quite a bit. There is good in the man. 

 

39 minutes ago, woodzie264 said:

Agreed

I think a lot of young people can learn from him and his story should be told more. Not just golfers can learn from his mistakes I feel anyone can. I think he is being more of that role model as he ages.

[woodzie264]

21 minutes ago, sirsteveo55 said:

 

I think a lot of young people can learn from him and his story should be told more. Not just golfers can learn from his mistakes I feel anyone can. I think he is being more of that role model as he ages.

I would agree with @iacas in that his talent was seemingly squandered in his youth...which is tragic. But I agree with sirsteve that he is improving as a person as he ages (from what I can tell) and I think folks who've hit the bottom and gotten back up that have a lot to offer too.

A wise person said that wisdom comes from mistakes, but that the key is to get your wisdom from others' mistakes. In that sense, someone who is willing to expose themselves and their flaws is helpful for many with the same issues.

Having said all of that, I don't him personally and am just speculating. 

[Lihu]

1 hour ago, Hacker James said:

At least he is fairly open about it, does not really make excuses (usually), he has toned it down quite a bit. There is good in the man. 

 

19 minutes ago, sirsteveo55 said:

 

I think a lot of young people can learn from him and his story should be told more. Not just golfers can learn from his mistakes I feel anyone can. I think he is being more of that role model as he ages.

I tend to agree with these assessments. I also think people can learn similar lessons from Tiger as well.

Everyone has demons.

[newtogolf]

1 hour ago, jamo said:

Not really a fan.

Same here, a lot of talent wasted on booze, (drugs?), cigarettes and women.  It's sad because he could have been so much better than he was.  

At this point he seems like a caricature of himself with the outrageous outfits and behavior.  I typically don't gravitate towards individuals that go out of their way to draw attention and makes spectacles of themselves.  

[Buckeyebowman]

From an essay by David Feherty, The Life and Crimes of Heavy D, Golf Magazine, May 2004.

    "Call him what you will, but Johnny's one hell of a survivor.

    I knew him when he weighed 160 pounds and his mullet was just a guppy. I was leading an event in Africa by a shot after three rounds and was introduced to him on the first tee. He hit it so far past me that day, he had to wave me up several times, and he wound up beating me by one stroke. Who knew this lunatic would win the PGA and the Open Championship? He has married himself out of a couple of fortunes, almost died of his enthusiasms, and made an album for Wal Mart. And the only reason he's never tossed himself off a tall building is that, with his record on personal decisions, he'd probably land on someone he loved."

[Patch]

I always liked John Daly. He seemed to represent his fans more so than the PGA. Sure there was/is alot of wasted talent in his career, but he was always a big draw for fans in the tournaments he played in. 

I actually met him in an RV park when we parked next to each other just by chance.  He seemed like a normal guy, and ironically we didn't talk about golf that much. 

[chilepepper]

With few exceptions we only see sanitized carefully cultivated glimpses into other players. It's somewhat refreshing to have characters like Daly on the course living life more on the fringes rather than the buttondowned grinning robots

[boogielicious]

I think JD has an addictive personality meaning that he struggles with substance abuse or borders on it. Golf probably saved his life in some respects. He is a big talent but that kind of issue is very difficult to overcome. My Dad was an alcoholic but a very good man and hard working plumber. But he always seemed to be fighting something internally. I see that same look in Daly's eyes during interviews. It is troubling. 

 

[RussUK]

I think he had the potential to be some much better than he was, and he wasnt a bad player at all. Like others have said the drink and what not ruined him. Fame is a funny thing.

Had he stayed off the booze and the rock and roll lifestyle, who knows, we may have had a "John Daly catch all thread" instead of a Tiger Woods one.